


Waiting for the Wheel to Turn

by PhantomEngineer



Category: Harry Potter - J. K. Rowling
Genre: Alternate Universe - Muggle, F/M
Language: English
Status: In-Progress
Published: 2018-01-03
Updated: 2018-06-19
Packaged: 2019-02-27 20:01:16
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 12
Words: 36,904
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/13255578
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/PhantomEngineer/pseuds/PhantomEngineer
Summary: A "muggle AU" of sorts.Minerva McGongall is a university lecturer. Her increasingly unreliable car needs ever increasing attention from the local garage, the owner of which doesn’t particularly mind. Sirius Black, garage owner hiding from his past and the family he left behind, would rather be lavishing his attentions on the woman rather than her car, but his plans are thrown into chaos when two strangers show up asking all sorts of inconvenient questions.





	1. Chapter 1

**Author's Note:**

> The title comes from the song 'Waiting For The Wheel To Turn' by Capercaillie.

Minerva swore, first in English then in Gaelic for good measure. The lights on her dashboard were blinking again, and these ones seemed to suggest it was serious. She hated her car, but even more than that she hated the prospect of buying a new one. Her ex-husband had bought it, an it had been one of the things she had received in their acrimonious divorce. She hated him, which probably didn’t help her feelings towards the car, a rusty wreck of happy memories turned sour. She’d never been interested in such things, had found the entire concept of engine capacities and whatever other details car salesmen talked about to be utterly overwhelming. She was an intelligent woman, with a PhD and multiple interests. She did not like being made to feel like a fool, to constantly being unsure if she was being tricked into a bad deal with words that she couldn’t understand. Besides, buying a new car would be expensive and she’d have to deal with selling the old one. It was a huge amount of hassle.

Every time something went wrong, she was reminded of the way her marriage had fallen to pieces, shattered fragments no matter how hard she struggled to fix it. Maybe she should give up on the car too, just as she had eventually admitted defeat with the relationship. Sometimes things were too far gone and euthanasia was the kindest option. He hadn’t made it easy for her, despite his desires to be as far from her as possible. He was a part of the reason she had moved. A childhood in the Highlands had made her love the Scottish landscape like no other, and without a husband to keep her in a city she had moved out to Kippen. It wasn’t the Highlands, but it was remote and devastatingly beautiful. She also ran no chance of ever accidentally seeing his face ever again. She could be surrounded by sweeping hills rather than bustling crowds, a background that harked back to her youth rather than the scenery of her failed marriage.

One of her PhD students had made her a darts board with his face. She had tried to look disapproving, but it had made her smile at a time she desperately needed some solidarity. She still had it, hung up inside her toilet door, though she no longer felt the same need to use it as she once had. There were plenty of holes in it, so many that his face was no longer clearly visible. Years had faded the photograph. She had more contact with the student, long since graduated and tenured, than she did with him. 

She cursed again, annoyed at both the car and at Dougal. They had been happy once, otherwise she’d never have married him. The car too had been new once, had worked without the slightest hint of a problem, had betrayed her eventually. She needed it though. The price of living in the countryside was that she needed a car to go into university to teach. Even big shops really required a supermarket, and while she could get by with the village shops she tended to call in to the big Tesco on her way back after class.

She knew there was nothing for it but to go to the garage. There was a small one opened a few years back, situated just outside of the village. She’d never really had much need to use it, having for years just continued to use the one Dougal had always taken the car to. Maybe if she knew more about what the flashing lights meant she might have felt confident enough to drive there, but it would be stupid. There was one just down the road from her, the fact that she had never gone there to fix the niggling issues that cropped up sporadically was a testament to her lack of knowledge and interest in cars. She had just continued to do as Dougal had taught her, following his patterns. It was ridiculous. She had heard nothing but good things from the other villagers regarding the young man who ran the garage, and it seemed disloyal to be going a great distance merely for the sake of never changing her routine.

Gently she coaxed the car forward, slipping up through the gears. The sound the engine made did not fill her with confidence, but slowly she drove across town. She had been hoping to go into Stirling for the day, but that idea had gone out of the window. She was just grateful that she had decided to do so, otherwise she might not have noticed the state of the car until she had to go into Edinburgh to teach, which would have been a much greater problem. She would have had to cancel her classes at short notice, which she hated having to do. If only it had held on for another fortnight and it would have been the summer holidays, less need to go as far as to university and so less of a pressing issue. All it meant was that her day was effectively ruined. She drove past familiar houses, going left at the post office with a truly worrying shuddering of the car that she felt vibrating up through the steering wheel and into her hands. It was with relief that she pulled into the garage, small but well-kept.

Outside there was a teenage boy skulking around, looking like he was up to no good. He slouched by the road, a surreptitious cigarette in his hand. He wore ill-fitting baggy clothing and a hat pulled down over his face, which did nothing to hide the lank, greasy red hair that poked out from underneath. Catching her eye he leered at her in an unappealing manner, giving her a glimpse of his acne-riddled face, before languorously scratching his crotch. 

Minerva thanked her lucky stars that she taught adults at university, where there was some degree of maturity at least, rather than the great unwashed masses of teenagers that always seemed to be loitering about causing trouble. Students could be hopelessly annoying, especially those who expected good marks without putting in the effort or those that seemed to be unaware that she had a life and career outside of teaching them, but at least there were those who truly felt passionate about their subject. Those students were a joy to teach, and she always enjoyed watching them learn. They were all a step above the specimen before her, of that she was certain. Wary of him, she got out of her car and heading into the garage to search for the owner.

“Excuse me?” she called, her voice echoing through the garage. It smelt of oil and grease, and she was afraid to touch anything in case she stained her clothes. Pieces of what she could only assume were engines littered the floor, though with her limited knowledge of car parts they could just as easily have been remnants of a gutted TARDIS. From beneath a blue car, clearly enough a newer model than her own that she could tell as much but no more, the mechanic in his grease-stained overalls emerged. He sat up in a languid, fluid movement to smile welcomingly at her.

“Hello,” he said, surprising her with his English accent. He sounded almost upperclass, though she put that down to her being unfamiliar with the accents south of the border. He was young, and even with the overalls hiding his body she could tell that he was well-built. His black hair was verging on disreputably long, as seemed to be fashionable for young men, though sensibly tied back so as not to interfere with his work. He could do with a shave, stubble surrounding his mouth in a way that either suggested a distaste for razors or a taste for facial hair. Either way, Minerva wasn’t entirely convinced she approved.

“Hello,” she said briskly, “I’m having some trouble with my car…”

He nodded as she turned to lead him out to where she’d left it. Her back to him, she failed to notice the way his eyes lingered on her, looking her up and down with a casual interest. While she’d never been to his garage before and they’d never had a conversation with each other, it wasn’t exactly like they didn’t know each other vaguely. It came of living in a small village.

For a moment they both stood and looked at her old car. Almost for the first time, Minerva really noticed just how old it really was, the grey paintwork doing nothing to help make it look anything other than faded and potentially rusty in places. The seats were worn and his more experienced eye noted that the tires were also in desperate need of replacing, the tread almost worn away with age and hard use.

“It’s the lights on the dashboard,” she said weakly, wondering if the car really was worth repairing. She glanced at his face, uncertain what his professional opinion would be. She may not have known a huge amount about cars, but the expression on his face even at that distance did not seem to be a promising one. She watched as he walked around it initially, then turned the key in the ignition. The engine spulttered and failed to start.

“Oh, it does that sometimes,” she said, wincing slightly at the realisation that she maybe should have had an issue like that seen to a long time ago. After a few tries, the engine came on enough for him to get a measure of the lights that had concerned her, but she had a suspicion that the prognosis was not going to be good. She felt out of place, standing watching him fiddle with her car.

“Do I want to know when you bought this car?” he asked, though he had a smile on his face that put Minerva at ease. She shook her head. She couldn’t remember when it had been bought, and it hadn’t been her who had done the buying anyway. Dougal had done that, just like he had almost certainly bought himself a newer model when she got the old one in the divorce, just as he’d found himself a newer model of woman before it.

“I’m Sirius, by the way,” he said, which in some ways was redundant but also helped to explain why the garage was called ‘Sirius’s Garage’ with the constellation of Canis Major on the sign. She had assumed it was because he had a passion for astronomy, but clearly it was to do with his name. She didn’t rule out the possibility that it was a nickname he had been given or chosen himself due to a passion for astronomy or some other bizarre reasons. She knew that hippies had often taken on various names connected to nature, though he seemed a little too young to be a remnant of the movement, as well as too sober and too surrounded by car parts. He might have just had eccentric parents, potentially hippies. 

“I’m Minerva McGonagall,” she replied, not shaking the hand he briefly offered her. It was covered in some kind of black oil, which he noticed as well as he swiftly withdrew it with an apologetic grin.

“Sorry,” he said with a laugh, “I get covered in all sorts of things fixing engines,”

The closest Minerva could relate to that was that when she gardened she would sometimes get some dirt on her hands, though it was still not exactly the same. She wasn’t much of a gardener, but she had taken to it when she moved to Kippen. It seemed a waste of a big garden to just ignore it, and she found that digging really helped take out her frustrations, fantasising that it was Dougal’s head rather than clumps of soil that she was savaging. She had worked out a lot of anger that way, though little of it remained. He was the ancient past in many ways, but the problems with her rickety old car were bringing back all the old resentments she thought she had laid to rest. 

“To be perfectly honest, I’m surprised the car still works,” Sirius was saying, “You must have some kind of magic touch to have kept it going. I can fix it, though it’ll take time and money. I’m not sure if they still do some of the parts it needs. But even so, it won’t last for long and you’ll be back here needing more work done. Not that I want to be turning away your custom, but I seriously recommend you get a new car of some sort, for your own sake…”

Minerva sighed heavily. It was a sensible suggestion, though something she had been dreading. Suddenly Scotland seemed very big and she very small. She knew she would have to walk home, a manageable distance that stretched out before her. Even just Gargunnock, the next village down the road on the way to Stirling, seemed so far away without a car. Edinburgh felt like another country, an almost insurmountable distance.

“I can patch it up enough for a few drives, though I wouldn’t recommend long distance,” Sirius said, seeming to sense her feelings on the matter, “Just as a temporary solution until you can get a new one…”

“Will it get me to and from Edinburgh three days a week?” Minerva asked, not feeling particularly hopeful.

“No…” Sirius answered, “I wouldn’t want you going further than Stirling really… I’ll see what I can do. What do you need to go to Edinburgh for?”

“I teach at the university,” Minerva answered despondently. She had no real time to deal with the emotional stress of buying a car, not at the end of term when there was marking and exams to deal with. Even had it not been something that filled her with such dread and reluctance, it was simply infeasible until after term had ended. She knew that it was something that should be considered, she couldn’t just walk in to a car shop and buy the first one she saw like she might do with sacks of potatoes when rushing through the weekly grocery shop.

“Though I guess if it can get me to Stirling then I can get the train,” she sighed, “And deal with buying a new car in a couple of weeks when I no longer have students taking finals and submitting essays…”

“I… might be able to give you a lift…” Sirius said slowly, “To Edinburgh. On one or two of the occasions. And to Stirling too, if the car’s misbehaving enough to make that a stretch…”

“Oh no,” Minerva sighed, “I couldn’t…”

“No no, no trouble at all,” Sirius grinned, “It’d be my pleasure, think of it as a service from the garage. You just have to promise me that you’ll get yourself a good new car and that when you do you bring it to me for any servicing it may need,”

He smiled so kindly that Minerva felt her heart melt slightly. Maisy, who lived next door to her, had always raved about what a nice young man he was. When he put it like that, as if it was a service he offered to help out those whose cars were being repaired, it did make sense. Without a car it could be difficult, and as a temporary measure a few generous lifts could make all the difference.

“Come back tomorrow morning, and I’ll hopefully have it running,” Sirius said, “Unless you’d rather I bring it round to yours. Might be wise actually, to check it runs alright…”

It was clear that he had very little trust in the car, considering it to be on a similar level to the varying piles of rusting parts that littered the garage.

“And I can give you a lift back to yours now too, if you want?” he paused, and gave her a sudden wink, “Unless you want to watch me get all greasy working on it?”

Minerva blushed slightly. That seemed almost like flirting, something that hadn’t happened to her in a very long time. She brushed it off, deciding she was clearly too lonely and should make some feeble attempt to find a decent man in the hopes that she wouldn’t mistake friendly gestures made by kind young men for interest that promised to get her hot and bothered. 

“No, I’ll just walk back from here, don’t want to keep you from your job,” Minerva replied, unusually warm despite the cool air. As she waited for him to write up a quick draft of the likely bill, she loosened her scarf slightly to let some off a bit of heat. He took her phone number and address for if he needed to contact her, which she hoped he wouldn’t. She could only imagine that it would be to tell her that the car was even worse than he’d initially thought and was therefore unfixable. He made sure she had his number too, though she knew she was unlikely to call him to ask for a lift. If she really needed it she would ask Maisy. Shoving the papers into her handbag she turned to walk back to her house along the roads, grateful at least for the good weather and beautiful scenery.


	2. Chapter 2

The walk through the village, with the beautiful Scottish hills surrounding her, made Minerva feel more optimistic. She was fit and healthy, even if she was getting on a bit. She was in far better condition than most women her age, and looked young enough that people were often surprised to hear that she’d passed fifty. The air was clean, and she would be able to deal with the hassle of getting to Edinburgh. She might even be able to rearrange a few of her appointments to reduce the number of days she needed to go in. She had become reliant on the car, when she really should spend more time enjoying the world around her. Kippen was a lovely little village full of good people, and she should really spend more time out walking the hills. Plus, Sirius seemed to be both competent and pleasant so she felt she was in good hands. He might even be able to give her pointers as to what to look for in a new car when she finally got round to buying one. 

When Minerva arrived back at her little house, she found that a note from Maisy that had been shoved through her letter box, which she picked up along with the other letters. Those she placed on the kitchen table to be dealt with later. The note she read. She groaned. She put the kettle on for a cup of tea and reread the note.

_Minerva!_  
_I need you to help me on Monday. There’s a couple renting the cottage, Mr and Mrs Lupin, but they’re French and I don’t speak French._  
_Thanks,_  
_Maisy_

She made herself a cup of tea, and sat at the table. For a moment she put her head in her hands. Then she stood up and went to the phone.

Maisy lived next door with her husband, their children having headed off to university a few years back. She was a nice enough woman, plump with grey hair and a warm smile. She was a housewife who rented out a cottage on the edge of the village for what she called her hobby though Minerva would have called it a small business. Minerva found her to be rather tiring at times, as she was always chattering away about something, but she was grateful that she was at least friendly. Maisy also had a tendency towards asking people for favours which were incredibly hard to refuse, regardless as to whether the person she asked was actually able or willing to do as she wanted. Minerva could see a situation like that unfolding, which ruined her slightly improved mood.

She was free on Monday, theoretically. She had no class, but she did still have her marking and her research. She knew, however, that Maisy knew she rarely went into university on Mondays. Part of living in a small village where everyone knew everyone else’s business meant such things were just general knowledge, and living next to the person who paid the most attention to those things meant that she knew that Maisy was already confident she was free. If she lied, she would have to go somewhere for the day on Monday, and with her car unreliable at best that was out of the question. She wasn’t keen on the idea of accompanying Maisy, as she could imagine no way in which she would be of use, but she was also reluctant to lie to someone who was nothing but kind, if slightly irritating. 

“Hello,” Maisy’s voice came through the line. Minerva knew she could have gone round, as it was only next door, but she knew if she did so she would almost certainly end up having a cup of tea as Maisy talked about everything and nothing, and before she knew it the day would be gone. She didn’t really have the energy to deal with Maisy, or making sure that she didn’t show her exhaustion on her face. If she did then Maisy would fuss and assumed she was getting sick, rather than just being worn out by Maisy’s incessant good cheer.

“Maisy, I got your note…” Minerva started, but was quickly cut off.

“Oh great, I’ll come pick you up at two on Monday afternoon then and we can go together. I imagine they speak some English but just in case. Besides, it’ll be a nice welcome for them, to show that Kippen’s such a wonderful little place,”

“Maisy, I don’t speak French,” Minerva protested, struggling to get a word in edgewise.

“What?” Maisy exclaimed in clear disbelief, “Surely you did it at school. Besides, you speak all those other languages…”

“I did, but I don’t use it so I’ve forgotten it all,” Minerva ground out, deciding not to go into the fact that the other languages she spoke were Gaelic and a few long dead ones, mainly for her research and teaching on Scottish history. She had never given Maisy or indeed anyone in her life the impression that she spoke French.

“Ooooh, I’m sure you know more than me,” Maisy continued, clearly not taking no for an answer, “Besides, you’re a university professor, that adds a bit of class you know, I’m sure it’ll be great. I’ll see you then, unless you want to pop round or something later on today…”

Minerva managed to not agree to go round next door later on, but by the time she put the phone down she had agreed to let Maisy pick her up on Monday. She had known it was almost inevitable, but still she felt worn out. It was a minor thing, but still another little issue to weigh on her mind. The reminder of how much French she had forgotten since she had left school also irked her. It felt like only yesterday that she’d been praised by all her teachers for her excellent pronunciation and grammar, a young girl with the whole world at her feet.

That didn’t mean she wasn’t proud of her achievements. The title of Professor was a hard-won one, something that spoke of a long career in academia and respect from her peers. She was proud of it, though she also liked the way all her colleagues and students always called her Minerva. The fact that very few people outside of her university bubble understood what her job entailed or what she did with most of her time didn’t really matter. Even Dougal had never really understood or cared to try what it was that fascinated her about ancient cultures and histories, or why she would want to spend so much of her life combing over it. She’d always accepted his complete disinterest as just his right to have his own passions, but with hindsight there had been something dismissive about the way he had regarded her career in comparison to the importance he placed on his own interests and hobbies, all of which Minerva had felt obliged to familiarise herself with.

She had wanted to go to Stirling to go to the gardening centre, but that would have to be delayed until she had some mode of transport that was reliable. She doubted the garden would suffer much. She made herself another cup of tea, changing to gardening clothes as it brewed, clothes already so old and dirty that a bit more mud wouldn’t matter. Mug in hand she headed downstairs, to the garden. She had quite liked the way that the house was built onto a steep hill. The driveway was a nightmare, so steep that visitors could never use it but Minerva was used to it. She might not know much about cars, but she was an expert at hill starts. The other consequence was that the front door opened onto what logically should have been the ground floor, consisting of her small living room, kitchen and a balcony overlooking her garden. Her bedroom was down the stairs, along with her back door that opened into the garden.

The next morning, the doorbell rang on the dot at ten, the time she had arranged with Sirius. She opened to find him exuding the impression of lounging comfortably, for all that he was standing perfectly straight on her doorstep. Behind him she could see her battered old car, sensibly parked on the street rather than her driveway. Over his left shoulder she caught a glimpse of Maisy, who she knew would barge in on the conversation and almost invariably talk them both into god-knows-what if she were given the chance.

“Come in for a cup of tea,” Minerva said, getting a surprised but pleased smile from Sirius in response.

“That would be lovely,” he said, his enthusiasm reminding her somewhat of a puppy. She had never particularly liked dogs, finding them to be too big, too noisy, too boisterous. They smelt too much of dog, too, a complaint that she recognised as being petty and somewhat irrational. She had always preferred cats, delicate and sensible creatures that knew how to look after themselves. She had often considered getting one, but somehow had never quite gotten round to it. She didn’t dislike Sirius though, just as she held no particular hatred for puppies. He seemed nice enough in his own way, even if he somehow seemed entirely out of place in her home. 

People rarely came round to hers for anything, which didn’t really bother her too much. It meant that she didn’t have to worry too much about ensuring her house looked appropriate. She kept it tidy, but tidy under her comprehension of the term. Books filled the rooms, overflowing from bookshelves. More often than not there would be essays from students as well as various other pieces of homework spread around the house, piled on every available surface. Journals too littered her house, just one of those things she had been meaning to organise for at least a decade. While she had still lived with Dougal, she had made a concerted effort to ensure all the myriad traces of her academic life didn’t expand beyond the small office she had had in their house, but now she owned every inch of the space she lived in. 

Unlike when she had met him at his garage, he wasn’t wearing grease-stained overalls, which in a way made sense. There he had been working with car engines, but now he was calling round with what she assumed to be her repaired car. He was dressed casually, though neatly, in plain jeans that while faded lacked any holes and a black leather jacket that she could only really describe as suiting him. They definitely matched his boots, also a tough black leather. It was almost as if he had made an effort to dress up, though there was nothing overly smart about his clothes. She imagined it was an impression born of the fact that his clothing both struck her as not quite as tatty as the style she had seen plenty of students over the years wear, though it bore a certain similarity.

“How do you take it?” she asked, awkwardly. She hadn’t necessarily planned for a visitor, and was suddenly really quite conscious of the haphazard manner in which her research notes were strewn over the kitchen table, though Sirius didn’t seem to mind. He had a pleasant kind of face, the kind that smiled easily and seemed to be friendly. She gathered up her materials with an embarrassed laugh before fussing about with the kettle. She hadn’t planned on spending any time with him that wasn’t purely business, either. She had been expecting to have a brief conversation in the street, focused entirely on the sorry state of her car, nothing more. 

“Milk and a bit of sugar,” Sirius answered, smiling. In some ways she though it suited him, he seemed like he was a bit of a sweetheart, though for all she knew it could just as easily be that he was a ladykiller. As the kettle boiled, she offered him biscuits, which he eagerly helped himself to.

“Sorry for the selection…” she said, realising that there were only ginger nuts and digestives in her old tin, which had a slight dent in its green tartan side. She tended to like the plain biscuits more than the more fancy varieties, though she did buy those on the few occasions she knew in advance she would have visitors. As it was, all she had were her usual favourites, which she knew some people would consider to be disappointing or boring.

“I love all biscuits,” Sirius said cheerfully. He placed them on the table as she rummaged to fetch a saucer, but by the time she handed it to him he had already eaten one of them. He gave her a slightly guilty look, before starting to nibble at the ginger nut that remained with a self-deprecating smile. 

As she handed him a cup of tea, she noticed that his hands were clean, which made sense just like him not wearing his overalls. He had come to deliver her car and give her the details of its state, so there was no reason for them to be covered in oil like they had been the day before. She sat down at the table with him, blowing on her tea and feeling slightly embarrassed at the realisation that she had invited him in so abruptly just to avoid a conversation with her neighbour. 

She wondered suddenly, as her glasses steamed up with the steam from the tea to hide the handsome face in front of her, if she might have inadvertently caused a flurry of gossip, though she quickly dismissed it. People were friendly here, and inviting him in for tea was merely a demonstration of her gratitude for his work on her car, as well as an acknowledgement that the conversation was liable to be longer and more technical than she really wanted. Tea and biscuits would at least serve to make it a little better. She doubted anyone would truly believe anything might be going on between the two of them beyond the barriers of professionalism, and felt a slight blush creeping into her cheeks at even having thought such a thing herself. She really was too lonely. If she couldn’t get a man then she needed to get a cat, pronto.

He gave her a full, technical summary of the many issues that she mentally summarised as constituting the reasons why her car was officially fucked. It was what she expected, though the fact that it was moving was a small mercy. She might be able to drive it to a local dealer, where she could face the prospect of buying a new car. She had always been brave, so she knew she’d be able to face it, she just didn’t want to.

“Thank you,” she said, grateful for his patience even if not for the news he was giving her.

“I’m sorry,” he apologised, shrugging, “Does it have emotional significance for you?”

Minerva paused, wondering for a moment. The only emotional connection she had to it was that of bad memories. She shook her head.

“No,” she said slowly, “My ex-husband bought it and I just never got round to replacing it. Cars are really not my speciality so buying a new one is just a task I’ve been putting off…”

“Ah…” Sirius said, sipping away at his tea, “I… I could help you with that, if you wanted it…?” he offered, slightly awkwardly, an almost shy smile nearly disappearing into the mug.

“Oh no…” Minerva started, though she was tempted by the idea. Having someone to help her with the task would undoubtably be a great relief, let alone someone who actually knew about cars. But she barely knew him, which made her hesitant to impose, though she also knew she had no friends who would offer and no one she would feel able to ask.

“It would be no problem,” Sirius rushed to reassure her, “Just, part of the service. And, you know, promise me you’ll bring it to me if you have any problems. I’d hate for you to end up with a car that didn’t suit you, after all,”

Minerva hummed slightly, torn between a desire to gratefully accept his help and her natural tenancy towards being generally quite reserved. 

“It would do me good to get to know more people in the village socially,” Sirius continued, really tipping the balance. Minerva wouldn’t say that she was the best person for him to get to know if he wanted to make friends with his neighbours, as she was a bit of an outsider herself in many ways, but the idea of it not being a complete act of charity on his behalf did make it far more appealing. She really should expand her social circle a bit more too, as most of her friends were work colleagues and few of them lived near Kippen. One of the part time lecturers lived in Stirling with her family, but most of them lived closer to campus. Maisy was friendly, but Minerva wouldn’t describe them as friends, though she had no doubt Maisy would. Maisy was seemingly friends with everyone.

She found herself agreeing, setting a date for a trip to a few car dealers that might have potential. She even agreed with no question to let Sirius be the one to drive, which wasn’t much of a stretch given the state of her car. He did not seem to be particularly keen on the idea of letting her drive the two of them any great distance in it, joking that he would have to bring his entire tool kit just in case.


	3. Chapter 3

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> I don't know anything about cars, as you can probably guess by the way I entirely skip all car related details. This is more of a set up than anything else, really.

Monday came and despite her reluctance, Minerva found herself getting into Maisy’s car to accompany her to meet the Lupins. Maisy chattered away as she usually did, bright and cheerful. Minerva had never known her to be anything else. Minerva was, by contrast, slightly put out. She would rather be at home marking or researching, or if she did have to venture out she found herself thinking that she thought she would prefer Sirius’s company. She was almost looking forward to letting him take her round the car dealers in the area, providing his professional opinion in his friendly, laid back manner. He was friendly and easy to take to, and while Maisy was certainly friendly and talkative the difference was that Sirius gave her a chance to get a word in edgewise.

Maisy looked neat, as she always did. While her hair was almost entirely grey, a few strands of brown resolutely held their colour in defiance of advancing age. It was plaited in a neat plait that was tied off with a bobble that had a large, yellow sunflower attached. She wore a floral suit, which in many ways reflected her sunny disposition. Minerva had not bothered to do anything with her hair, leaving it loose. She tended to pin it up in a bun when she was teaching, keeping it firmly out of her eyes, but when she was just at home she often left it as it was, just tying it back into a loose pony tail for brief moments when it was necessary. She dressed smartly when she was teaching, but like with her hair she made no such effort when spending the day marking in the comfort of her own home. She had made an exception that day, knowing that she would be meeting new people, though she hadn’t pushed the boat out by any means, preferring to stick to a simple tartan dress that she was particularly fond of. It was slightly old, but it was comfortable and it suited her, so she felt no shame in it. 

As they drove through the village to the small cottage on the edge, where the Lupins would be staying, Minerva sat in silence She let the idle conversation bubbling forth from Maisy wash over her as she enjoyed the scenery, lost in her own thoughts. She still had no idea why she was going with Maisy. She had had a quick flick through an old French book that she had found after extensive searching, but she still had only the most basic grasp on the language. She also assumed that a couple that had chosen to rent a cottage in the middle of nowhere in Scotland would almost certainly have some passing knowledge of English, but managing to say so to Maisy took far more effort than just shrugging and going along with her request.

The cottage was certainly a lovely one, idyllic and situated amongst the beautiful Scottish scenery. It was close enough to Kippen that walking to the village shop was possible, though it was relatively isolated, no houses neighbouring it closely. She was vaguely aware that Maisy mostly rented it out to people on walking holidays, who intended to do things like hike around the scenery, climb Dumyat and visit the Wallace Monument. There wasn’t much exciting happening in Kippen, but it was a nice place for a short break from busy city life. She waited while Maisy fussed around readying the house, the last few final touches that Minerva doubted anyone would really care that much about. Maisy was putting some flowers in a vase, but Minerva personally preferred the wild ones that grew in the hedgerow, left there in peace to live out their lives as flowers should. She rather assumed that anyone that was coming for an extended holiday in the area would probably be of a similar mind, but she kept her peace. 

It wasn’t long until the sound of a car pulling into the driveway signalled their guests arrival, to Minerva’s relief. The sooner she could get home the sooner she could finish her work for the day. She was looking forward to getting the day over with, for term to be over and for her to have a new car. She was, to her surprise, looking forward to trailing round car dealers with Sirius. She followed Maisy out of the cottage, glad that the weather was pleasant. It would almost certainly be nice for the new occupants, though she had no idea how long they were intending to stay. If Maisy had mentioned it, it had been a part of the conversation that Minerva had tuned out.

From the car, which seemed to Minerva to be old in the classic sense rather than the sense in which her car was old, emerged two figures. The man seemed to be older than the woman, his dark hair showing hints of grey. He was dressed in a manner that she would consider to be French, with a rather fancy silk cravat showing above a waistcoat that contained a slight paunch. He had a thin moustache positioned beneath a slightly prominent nose. Minerva would have put him to be comfortably past middle aged, though she imagined he was younger than her and Maisy. She would not necessarily have described him as handsome, though he did appear to be well dressed and bore himself with an air of elegance. The woman with him had blonde hair that Minerva could only imagine was styled to within an inch of its life. Her age was harder to judge, as her face was covered in a thick layer of make-up. She was dressed in a sharply cut pink trouser suit, the same shade as her lipstick. Had Minerva not already been told, she would have assumed both of them to be French. There was just something about their general air of being. 

When Mr Lupin started speaking to Maisy, Minerva relaxed. He had a very strong French accent, but he was clearly perfectly capable of speaking English. The woman, who Minerva assumed to be Mrs Lupin, smiled a faintly insincere smile that didn’t quite reach her eyes, before following her presumed husband into the cottage. Minerva briefly considered the possibility that she was a mistress, but dismissed it. It wasn’t so much that she felt it to be impossible, but more that she didn’t particularly care about the details of the couple. She was in many ways entirely uninvolved. She was neither the owner of the cottage nor likely to see either of them again for any social reason. She allowed herself to drift into the background, letting Maisy prattle away to them about the cottage and her suggestions for what they might like to do during their visit, before finally hopping back in the car to let Maisy take her back to her marking.

When she went into university that week she did so by carefully driving to Stirling and taking the train. Her car did get her to and from her house, but she was very much aware that it was not reliable. Despite the work Sirius had done on it, it still made some slightly worrying noises when she switched between second and third gear. The train wasn’t bad at all, and had she lived in Stirling it might have been an option for regular commutes. However, from Kippen it was more of a hassle and so she was glad that she had arranged to go at least look at cars with Sirius.

When he rang her doorbell, once again at the exact time they had arranged, Minerva was ready for their shopping trip. She had dressed nicely, wearing practical but relatively smart trousers and a rather pretty blouse that was almost entirely covered by a practical cardigan. It felt nice to have someone to help her, as for far too long she had always been the one helping everyone else. She liked that people tended to come to her for help, and that she was so very self-sufficient, but it was a relief to be able to delegate some of the responsibility for the car buying to someone who would know what to look for. She felt less certain when she looked past Sirius, his hair tied back neatly and his facial hair looking almost like it had been trimmed to keep it neat, and noticed that he had not come to pick her up in a car.

“A motorbike?” she asked in horror. She had never been on a motorbike before, and she had no particular desire to try it out. They seemed rather exposed and a little more dangerous than she really liked. Besides, there were two of them.

“It’s not just any old motorbike!” Sirius objected, “It’s a 1959 Triumph Bonneville,”

That meant nothing to Minerva. As far as she was concerned it was a motorbike and they all looked basically the same. This one was black, with some red details. She chose not to voice this opinion, as she suspected that it might not go down that well with Sirius.

“You want to take me car viewing on a motorbike?” she asked incredulously. Sirius shuffled slightly, looking a bit nervous. Minerva paused. Maybe she was being ungrateful. After all, he was going out of his way to be friendly and helpful. It was still a motorbike though.

“Yeah…” Sirius said, looking a bit deflated, as if he was regretting his decision, “Sorry…”

“Sorry,” Minerva said, wincing slightly, “I’ve never been on a motorbike before… I’m a little nervous. I was… expecting a car…”

“I have a helmet and I’m a very safe driver,” Sirius said, clearly doing his best to reassure her, “If you want I can take you for a short drive and if you really don’t like it we can rethink. I don’t actually have a car, I go everywhere on my bike…”

Minerva didn’t want to get on the motorbike. Even with a helmet, it seemed awfully precarious. Maybe had she been younger she might have been tempted by the idea, finding release in a form of rebellion, but no more. She was reluctant, seeing it just as a machine more likely to cause death and dismemberment than not. She always got nervous when motorbikes whizzed past her while she was driving, worried that she might accidentally clip one and send some poor lad spinning to an early grave. But she also felt churlish at thinking such negative thoughts when Sirius was clearly going out of his way to help her, out of the goodness of his heart. She appreciated that. She also appreciated the fact that she had very little options when it came to transporting the two of them around the local area to view cars. Public transport would be nigh on impossible. Even she knew that her car was a joke.

“…If you’d rather, we can go in your car…” Sirius suggested, which warmed the cockles of Minerva’s heart. She knew that it was not a particularly great option, but she was touched at his willingness to suggest it. It made her feel like he really did want to help her, that it wasn’t just some misguided attempt at charity. 

“No, it’s alright,” she said, finding the courage she knew she had, “I suppose your bike it the more sensible option. Just… be gentle?”

“Of course!” Sirius said, reminding her once again of a puppy with his sudden enthusiasm.

It took a slight rearrangement of her hair, but she put on the helmet he offered her, and cautiously sat behind him on the motorbike. Straddling the saddle, she was very glad she was wearing trousers. She had never been a prude or the kind to be above physical contact, but it seemed dreadfully close and personal. It seemed rather forward to be wrapping her arms around a man she barely knew, though not uncomfortable. He didn’t seem to mind, in fact to the contrary he encouraged her to hold on tighter. Once he set off, she found she did so naturally.

It was different flying through the familiar streets on the back of a motorbike rather than driving in her old car. It wasn’t quite her cup of tea, but it wasn’t as bad as she had initially dreaded. She rested her helmeted head against Sirius’s back, feeling comfortable despite herself. He was a nice size to hug, neither too fat nor too thin. Just a decent amount of solid muscle, the warmth of his flesh seeping through his clothing to warm her where they touched. She wasn’t sure if it was him or the motorbike, but as they rode she could smell a hint of motor oil and petrol. It was probably both, she thought realistically as green hills passed them by, as the motorbike presumably used such things and Sirius obviously spent most of his life fiddling with engines.

It meant she couldn’t really give him a run down on what it was she really wanted in a car until they had arrived at their first destination. Her requirements weren’t particularly complicated, in part due to having a limited knowledge of cars, but she did have a few preferences. 

“I want something cheap but reliable,” she told him, as she looked uncertainly at the models on display. To her they all looked ultimately like cars, which wasn’t very helpful. All cars tended to look like cars. 

He nodded, thoughtfully, clearly already having a few models in mind, “And with a good reputation for safety too, I would assumed. Anything else?”

She frowned thoughtfully. Aside from getting her from A to B, the only other thing she really needed was good brakes for her drive and a tape player.

“It’s vital that it has a tape player,” she told him, which made him laugh somewhat. 

“You don’t want me having to drive all the way to Edinburgh without being able to listen to Runrig play Loch Lomond, do you?” she asked him, laughing. It probably was a silly detail to care about, but it was an important one to her. She liked to be able to listen to audiobooks or music on her commute.

“Don’t know if I know that one,” Sirius mused, his eyes full of amusement, “You’ll have to let me listen to it some time. Educate me…”

“I suppose I would be doing you a favour…” Minerva laughed, glad that he was laughing along with her, rather than at her for her lack of knowledge.

Every car he had the various employees of the car dealerships show her, he was clear to point out the radio and tape player of with ever-increasing flamboyance, making her laugh more each time. In many ways, it took a lot of the stress out of the decision making process. The day seemed to fly by, as they talked about a mixture of which cars would suit her needs best and irrelevant chitchat that meant nothing much. In some ways she was almost disappointed when she did decide on which car she wanted, a decision she hadn’t expected to reach anything like as fast as she did, as it meant that their time together was to come to an end. She wasn’t sure if it was her imagination or not, but he seemed to be torn between pride at having helped her and a slight hint of sadness, as if he too were sad for them to part ways.

“We should have a day out,” Sirius said, smiling, “To get you used to your new car,”

Minerva laughed, as she had done for much of the day, nodding. She had been enjoying herself, and the idea of spending time with him away from cars did seem like a fun idea. Something to do during the summer, in between her usual research and conferences. She wondered, for a brief moment, if he would be interested in Scottish history. Dougal had never shown the least bit of enthusiasm in following her round on research trips, but she had visited some places with friends and those trips had always been great fun. A lot of those friends now had families, lived far away, all sorts of mundane reasons that meant it naturally became harder to spend days out, poking through the Scottish landscape and making notes.

“Unless of course you want another trip on my motorbike that it,” Sirius continued, a teasing glint in his eyes, “Or you want to let me convince you to love it…”

“I think I’d rather break in my new car,” Minerva said, smiling. It felt nice to have him so enthusiastic about the idea of spending more time with her, both flattering and relaxing at the same time. 

“We could always do both…” Sirius suggested, giving her a wink, “Though I suppose I’m only going to get to hear Loch Lomond if I get in your car, so let’s do that first. Let you show me the local sights I might have missed,”

Minerva snorted, “I’m sure you’ve zipped all over the place on that bike of yours,”

He had definitely seemed to be perfectly familiar with the roads, taking her down a couple of lanes she hadn’t known, completely confident in his sense of direction.

Sirius shrugged, “It’s different with company,”

Minerva nodded. It was different going places and seeing things when you were with people. She liked long walks on her own, lost in her thoughts. She found them to be a good way to think through problems, letting her subconscious find the answers as she drank in the scenery. But at the same time, it was good to spend time with friends, to go out and experience things with other people. She had enjoyed her day with Sirius far more than she might have expected, the cheery conversation keeping her constantly on her toes. 

“We’ll go for a drive in my car, and we’ll see about the motorbike,” she said. She did like the idea of having a day out, getting used to the new car with someone else there as emotional support. They could have lunch in a nice cafe, do things that she always felt awkward doing alone. Days out seemed like a lot of effort alone, but with Sirius she could imagine having a good time. She was already starting to think of places to go, places she hadn’t been in a long time or had considered but never got round to. Whether or not she’d let him take her anywhere on the motorbike remained to be seen. 

“Sounds almost like a date,” she mused to herself, amused, missing the slight look he gave her, almost as if he were assessing her for her reaction to the idea.


	4. Chapter 4

Realistically, Minerva didn’t think that it was strictly speaking necessary to have a day out driving round the local sights to allow her to adjust to her new car. Aside from anything else, she used it pretty much straight away to do her weekly shop and not long after that took it all the way into Edinburgh. She had almost phoned Sirius to call off their arranged day out, to cancel it as it was really not needed from a practical point of view, but she didn’t. He had to know that she would almost certainly be used to the car by the time they did next meet, as they had arranged for a day after term ended when Minerva would be much more free. And yet the fact that he hadn’t shrugged and said by then she would have surely adapted to the new car made her wonder if his reason for suggesting it was similar to her reason to agreeing - enjoyment of the company. 

So Minerva picked him up the morning they had decided on, glad that the weather was good. She found that she almost always had good luck when it came to the weather, days she had arranged to go out almost invariably were lovely and sunny. Had it rained they would have postponed, but it was glorious. The sun was nearly warm, though the breeze still had a slight tinge of a chill to it. Sirius was waiting for her, leaning against his motorcycle outside his garage. He had a small flat above it, he had told her, so he really did live surrounded by his beloved car parts.

Minerva had been quite embarrassed by how much thought she had put into her clothing for the day. She was just extremely grateful that no one had witnessed her dithering over that to wear like a silly school girl with a crush. She had almost considered make up, before remembering that she never wore make up because she hated it. Her natural face was perfectly fine and besides it was just a day of taking a young potential friend round the Stirling area. She had settled on sensible but flattering dark trousers and a rather nice deep red woollen jumper. It would be ridiculous to dress up when practicality was a far more important priority, though she had very nearly gone in the other direction as a reaction to her initial thoughts, but ultimately turning up in her ugliest clothing also seemed like she was overthinking the whole situation. As it was, she was wearing clothes that were both comfortable and that she knew suited her in a laid back, muted manner.

Sirius was dressed as he often was, plain jeans and a black leather jacket. Underneath she could see the hint of large lips that suggested that he was also wearing a Rolling Stones T-shirt. He gave her a charming smile as he got into the car, sinking into the passenger seat as if he belonged there. She gave him a welcoming smile in return. It was hard to be anything but cheerful with his perpetually sunny attitude, which combined with the beautiful rolling green hills lit by golden sunlight. The air was full of the sounds of summer, the gentle hum of tractors and farm equipment mixing with insects and birds.

“So…” he said, “I suppose we should check that your tape player works properly…”

Minerva couldn’t help but laugh at that. It worked fine, she knew because she’d used it when she’d driven the car already, but she gestured towards the glove compartment anyway. Sirius opened it, drawing out ‘Once in a Lifetime’ by Runrig and inserting it into the tape player. As the first few chords of ‘Dance Called America’ started to play through the speakers, she felt a slight tension wash over her, a nervousness that she had not felt for a long time, the nervousness of introducing someone to something she loved and being afraid that maybe they wouldn’t like it.

“I assume you’ve been to Lake Menteith?” she asked him, distracting herself from her thoughts.

“The only lake in Scotland?” he said, as she rolled her eyes slightly, “Yes, popped over there once or twice on my motorbike,”

“But have you been to the ruined priory on the island in the middle of the lake?” she asked as she took the winding, narrow roads out of Kippen with the confidence born of longterm residence.

“No…” Sirius answered with a smile. There was something about his enthusiasm that was almost infectious. It both suited and was at odds with the vast greenery that spread out from either sides of the country roads, without boundaries and yet also so intense that it swept everything else away. Minvera got the impression that no matter she might have planned or suggested for their day out he would have responded with a similar amount of delight, as if anything would make him happy. 

He seemed, to her slight relief, to be actively enjoying the music pouring forth, nodding his head slightly to the rhythm and looking with interest at the case in his hands. The drive was relatively short, not taking them anymore than halfway through the album, but pleasant. It was nice music and good company, as well as Minerva’s deep seated relief at having a car that responded so easily to her touch. The turns and shifts of gears were all smooth, the engine as quiet as an engine could be. She didn’t voice her gratitude at the way that there was no longer a worrying crunching noise whenever she moved between second and third gear, which was something she had to do quite a bit on those roads. 

She hadn’t been across to Inchmahome Priory in a long time, though she had fond memories of it. She had been there before for days out with friends and with Dougal. They weren’t the only ones getting the boat over, sharing the ride with a family with three very excited children and a nervous, twitchy middle-aged man that Minerva quickly pegged as a birdwatcher. The children made her glad that she had never herself reproduced, three strawberry blonde little terrors that made far more noise than their small bodies would suggest. The parents, also strawberry blonde and looking slightly sleep deprived, seemed to be struggling to prevent their children causing too much havoc. The birdwatcher mostly fiddled with his binoculars with pale, almost effeminate hands, wrapped in layers of unappealing anorak, a beige cap covering most of his nondescript brown hair.

Sirius breathed in the clean air, seemingly revelling in the expanse of water that surrounded them. Minerva too relaxed, enjoying the brief ride until they disembarked onto the island. She had tried to wave away Sirius’s insistence at paying for both their tickets, but had eventually capitulated. It was only the first stop in her planned day out, after all, and she would simply pay for the next part. His argument had been logical though and she couldn’t fault him for that, pointing out that she had made the plan and was doing all the driving so it was the least he could do.

As they wandered around the ruined priory, Sirius asked about her work. The family headed in a different direction to them, which Minerva was grateful for. The children scampered off, producing various sounds that she could only imagine would scare off any birds the poor birdwatcher might hope to spot. He skulked around, fidgeting with his binoculars, moving more in their direction than the one the children had taken. Minerva couldn’t really blame him for that.

After a couple of hours, during which Minerva felt like she had told him her entire life story and yet had found out nothing about him, they headed back on the boat, both hungry and eager for lunch. Minerva rather wished she had thought to bring a camera, though she had never been one for taking photographs. It had been a lovely morning, peaceful and relaxed. As far as she could tell, Sirius had enjoyed himself too, taking pleasure in the quiet solemnity that resonated from the old walls that still stood.

Lunch was nothing more complex than a good soup and sandwich from a nice cafe overlooking the lake. It was quiet, the only other customer being a solitary woman who entered not long after them. She had the kind of face that had never been pretty but that aged reasonably well. She sat alone at a table, reading a Mills and Boons romance with her brown hair swept up into a plain pony tail. Minerva respected that kind of confidence, as not everyone felt able to go out to eat alone, though she had never been much of a fan of the romance genre.

“It is beautiful here,” Sirius sighed, after he’d inhaled his lunch, “I’m looking forward to where you’ll take me next,”

Minerva smiled, still eating the last remains bites of her cheese sandwich. She was glad that he seemed to be enjoying himself. She certainly was. There was once again a minor dispute over who paid, but it was good natured and in the end Sirius relented. Once again they got into her car, Runrig continuing to sing for them.

“It’s a good car,” she said, which was true. She did like the car. It suited her, being simple and as far as she could tell reliable. It responded well to her touch and the speakers were far superior to the ones in her old car.

“Good,” Sirius said with a smile, “I’m glad you like it. Next time I’ll take you somewhere on my bike. Maybe we should go monster hunting at Loch Ness…”

Minerva snorted unglamorously, “I think I prefer my car to your bike,” she said. It wasn’t so much that she hated the motorbike, more that it was not exactly her style. It hadn’t been as bad as she might have thought, but she did find it far more comfortable and civilised to sit inside a vehicle with music playing rather than sitting outside at the mercy of the elements.

“You give me some time and I’m sure I’ll be able to convince you to love it,” Sirius protested good-naturedly, clearly very much attached to his bike.

“It’s a motorbike,” Minerva said realistically, “You get wet when it rains,”

Sirius started laughing at that, unable to really object to that assessment. Minerva was smiling too. She imagined he’d been rained on more than once. She wasn’t sure about monster hunting or Loch Ness, but she imagined it might be fun with Sirius. She wasn’t sure about being taken all over Scotland on the back of his motorbike, but maybe more close to home it might be alright. Something fun, even.

As it was, they stopped off at the Wallace Monument. It was a climb to the top, but from there the entire Stirling area spread out beneath them. The array of houses that made up Stirling, surrounded by greenery extending outwards towards the horizon. It didn’t really matter how long she had lived there, but whenever she paused to think the beauty of the landscape always took her breath away. At the same time it made her long for the ever more dramatic and desolate glory of the Highlands. She lost herself for a moment, wondering what it would be like to drive up to the heartlands of her childhood with Sirius, show him the beautiful loneliness that existed there.

Was she in danger of falling in love with him, she wondered suddenly, glancing away from the scenery to observe his profile. A handsome face, cheeks tinged pink with the sharpness of the wind. A man she knew virtually nothing about, but a man who had been nothing but lovely to her. Kind and generous, good company and good humour. She left it to the back of her mind as they walked around the pathways, drinking in nature and talking about nothing much. He listened with polite interest, either well feigned or genuine, to her academic ramblings and she listened in to him enthuse about engine parts. She had no interest in them as such, but she liked to see the way in which his face lit up with passion.

The final stop for the day was in Bridge of Allan, where they had fish and chips. Minerva would sometimes buy fish and chips to take home, but she hadn’t eaten out there in a long time. She had once upon a time gone there semi-regularly after a day out walking with a friend, but the friend had moved to Madrid. Minerva had never liked eating out alone, and the takeaway option was in many ways more convenient. She had been somewhat tempted to get their fish and chips to go, but she felt that maybe it was wiser to eat out rather than either eating in her new car or either of their houses. She wasn’t sure if they were quite at that stage in knowing each other yet. 

As they walked from where she had parked their car to the cafe, a car that seemed faintly familiar to Minerva passed them. It was the woman in the passenger seat that made her recognise it, rather than the car itself, as Minerva had always been better with people than cars. She caught a glimpse of Mrs Lupin in the passenger seat, her arm and hand hanging causally out of the window. Minerva payed them no heed as they drove by, Mrs Lupin likewise appearing not to notice her or Sirius. Minerva was glad for that, as while she had no ill feelings towards the couple, she would rather not risk them intruding in on her meal with Sirius. All it really did make her feel that she might have a slightly overactive imagination, as clearly the Lupins were married. She had no idea why she had thought differently except that maybe meeting Sirius had made her desperate for a bit of adventure and so was seeing drama where there was nothing but a perfectly ordinary French couple. She dismissed all those thoughts from her mind as she took a seat in the small restaurant, determined to ask Sirius for at least a hint about his past before he ended up running his garage in Kippen. 

“You haven’t told me anything much about yourself or where you’re even from,” Minerva pointed out lightly as she covered her fish and chips in a very generous amount of salt and vinegar. Sirius seemed to hesitate for a very long time, using the food in front of them almost like an excuse to spend time fussing over condiments rather than answer her immediately. 

“I went to Eton,” he said, “But I also ran away from Eton and my family in my final year there… My family were… not very nice… I haven’t had any contact with them since,”

He seemed hesitant to say even that, which Minerva could understand. Eton certainly explained the accent, and if he had run away from a family that was in some ways unpleasant or abusive then that would also explain why it was that he was always so careful to deflect all their conversation to being either about Minerva’s past or the present. She nodded her understanding, curious but unwilling to probe further at a topic that clearly caused him distress. Maybe when they knew each other better he might open up to her. She changed the subject, returning their conversation to different topics for the remainder of their meal.

She drove them back to Kippen slowly, almost reluctantly. Runrig gave a rousing rendition of ‘Loch Lomond’, which she would ordinarily be absorbed in, but she was distracted by the man she was driving. She didn’t want the day to come to an end. As they passed under Stirling Castle, the small white houses lined up beneath it, she thought how maybe they should go there for a day, maybe with a walk along the Back Walk as well. Her mind drifted to other places, nearby like Dumyat and further afield like parts of the West Highland Way, that would be nice to go to together. Sirius seemed quiet and thoughtful, looking out at the darkening landscape as he tapped his fingers in time to the music until they pulled into the entrance of his garage. 

“You’ve left your lights on,” she commented, noticing that the lights in his rooms above the garage were on, “Were you really in that much of a rush this morning?” 

“That’s strange,” Sirius said, frowning, “Guess I must have been too excited about our day trip,”

Minerva laughed. It had been a long time since she laughed as much as she had during the day. That wasn’t to say that her life had been entirely humourless, but that it had been a while since she had spent an extended amount of time with someone whose company she enjoyed as much as she found she was enjoying Sirius’s. It was certainly flattering to think that he had been so caught up in the idea of spending the day with her that he’d forgotten something like that. 

“Unless the fairies came in and turned them on, as a welcome home present,” she joked. He laughed at that, a pleasant sound she was growing to be quite fond of.

“Oh no,” he said, his voice half mock fear, half joyful laughter, “Maybe I should have you come check with me, just in case they’ve left a present,”

She hesitated for a moment, unsure if he meant what she thought he meant. It seemed a bit fast for her tastes, but she was also feeling quite swept up in the moment. He could just as easily mean nothing more than for her to have a drink before heading home. She was an adult, and in complete control of her life. He seemed to be flirting with her, and she quite liked the sensation. She suspected that she was flirting with him too. She definitely was making no efforts to signal her lack of interest, mainly because she was starting to suspect that she was in fact really quite interested. 

“Not for long,” she said with a smile, “Just because you obviously need someone to protect you from the scary fairies. And to ease my curiosity and see if you really do sleep on engine parts…”


	5. Chapter 5

Minerva was still smiling as Sirius led her up the stairs to his front door, and kept smiling as he unlocked it. As she stepped over the threshold into Sirius’s brightly lit home, she nearly crashed into his back. He had stopped abruptly, blocking easy access, so she stepped to move round him. The moment she did, she understood why he had frozen so suddenly, the smile dropping from her face.

His flat was clearly relatively sparse, consisting mostly of just a single room. Against the wall there was an unmade bed. The walls themselves were covered in posters, mostly of motorbikes, some of which had scantily clad women draped over them. Some clothes were piled haphazardly in a corner. There was a single, solitary armchair in the centre of the room. It smelt faintly of fish and chips, as if a takeaway had only recently been eaten there.

Had that been all, Minerva would have been unsurprised. However in the armchair sat a man, and on the bed there perched a woman. That explained why the light had been on, but given Sirius’s shocked reaction they were not expected guests by any means. Both of them were apparently reading copies of Playboy, which when Minerva looked again at the room, had clearly come from a stack that she assumed Sirius usually kept under his bed, rather than strewn over the floor as they currently were. 

The man lowered his magazine, and said in a voice that lacked any distinguishing accent whatsoever, “Close the door,”

“She’s uninvolved, let her go,” Sirius said, his eyes flicking to Minerva. There was panic in his gaze, his whole body rigid. 

Minerva reached out her hand, and closed the door. She could guess that there was danger in that action, but she knew that if she turned and walked away, which she had no guarantee of being able to do anyway, she would regret it for the rest of her life. She had always been curious and she had always been brave.

The man in the chair remained seated, perfectly relaxed. Minerva could tell that he was in complete control of the situation, so had no need to stand. He casually tossed aside his copy of Playboy, paying no attention to where it landed on the floor, a complete disregard for both the magazine and the room in general. He had black hair, slicked back, and was clean-shaven. His eyebrows and cheekbones were sharp, adding elegance to the slightly hooked nose. His expression was hard, but somehow almost magnetically attractive. He was dressed in a well-cut black suit, flattering and far too refined for Sirius’s flat.

The woman likewise discarded her copy of Playboy, leaving it abandoned on the bed as she drew herself to her feet, balancing with ease on soaring high heels. She too was wearing black, though not a suit. She was dressed in a skintight evening dress, low cut and with a slit all the way up her thigh. As she moved, Minerva noticed a garter which seemed to have what looked suspiciously like a weapon of some sort in it, but once the woman was standing it disappeared from view, hidden once more by the slinky fabric. It was enough for Minerva to wonder if she had maybe bitten off more than she could chew, the threat of violence oozing forth from both of the intruders. She wondered what it was that she had stumbled into. She glanced at Sirius’s face, trying to guess if he knew them or not. 

The woman’s hair was loose, a rich dark red that spilled over her shoulders and as she approached to lean languidly against the wall in a way that made Minerva certain that attempting to leave before they were given permission would not end well, she saw bright green eyes. Her figure was easily comparable to the models that graced the covers of the abandoned Playboys, and she carried herself with sultry confidence. The boredom the two of them had displayed with regards to the models in the magazines made sense when considering that she was there in the flesh, outshining everyone else in the world as far as Minerva could tell. 

“Regulus send his regards,” she purred. Her voice was like the man’s, strangely devoid of any traces of a localised accent and yet unlike Sirius they lacked the full enunciation to make it received pronunciation. She would have assumed them to be English, but even that was only faint, more a case of being nothing else and therefore defaulting to English. It was almost disconcerting, as if they had carefully removed all traces of personality and a past from their voices, carefully recreating an entirely neutral version of themselves. Minerva had no idea who Regulus was, but she guessed Sirius did. She heard the sound of his breath being sharply drawn in, his hands trembling. He swallowed audibly.

“What do you want with me?” he asked, his voice strained, “I’ve had nothing to do with my family in years,”

“Regulus stole something,” the man said. His voice was enchanting in a way, deep and rich. It was one that could easily be used to charm and enthral people, though now he was using it to terrify them. Minerva felt a shiver run through her, the marrow in her bones shaking. She had so many questions and for the first time in her life felt incapable of asking them.

“We want to know where it is,” the woman continued, her lips forming a perfect smile. It was beautiful but deadly, nothing warm or inviting about it at all. It didn’t touch her eyes, merely a motion of muscles forming a pretty illusion.

“I haven’t seen Regulus since I left my family,” Sirius said, his voice almost sad. There was a weight of history in his tone, a slight tremble over the name of Regulus. Minerva wished she knew more about him, about his family and his past. There was clearly something hidden there, skeletons buried beneath the garage and his breezy good nature.

The couple gave no response to his reply, continuing to watch with an almost bored air. Minerva felt out of place, a foreigner who had accidentally wandered into something she didn’t understand, struggling to understand the subtleties and everything that went unsaid. 

“I’m feeling generous,” the man said, his tone of voice giving no hint of kindness or patience, “You can have the night to reconsider you answer. Tomorrow you will come and pick us up in your car. Be here at 10am sharp. I would strongly suggest that you give due consideration to the consequences that might arise should you be late…”

Minerva shivered, and she could see that Sirius considered his words to be a threat. 

“I don’t have a car,” Sirius said weakly.

“Your girlfriend can drive,” the man said with a shrug, entirely disinterested in Sirius’s protest. 

“She’s not my…” Sirius started to say, but trailed off under the glare from dark eyes. Minerva felt a slight stab at her heart, wounded by the suddenness of his protest, the fact that that had drawn a response from him far more than the ominous or threatening behaviour of the two intruders. She wasn’t his girlfriend, it was true, and maybe it was better not to be given that trouble seemed to have found him, but the rejection hurt nonetheless.

“Your piece on the side, if you’d prefer,” the woman drawled, rolling her eyes unsympathetically.

“Harsh,” the man said, continuing on from her as naturally as if they were one and the same, “Poor woman is standing right beside you. She seems like a decent catch if you ask me, and brave too…”

The way he looked at Minerva made her uncomfortable, as if he were noting her every detail, undressing her with his eyes but not in a sensual way. In a way that seemed to measure her and judge her, a way that looked for weaknesses. A way that treated her as a piece of meat to be used however he felt like it. It was almost as if he had already seen her naked, had already seen everything of her and was merely replaying it in his mind, a bored disinterest much like the way he had treated the Playboy magazine models. Out of the corner of her eyes she saw Sirius’s fists clench slightly but he did nothing else. He didn’t really have time for it, as his hands quickly became occupied. A bag, the kind of size for an overnight kit or a short holiday, was thrown by the woman towards him and he caught it instinctively. 

“You’d better pack too, professor,” she said with a slightly mocking tone, “Looks like you’re coming with us,” 

Minerva felt her blood freeze. She hadn’t told them her name, let alone her job, but that suggested they knew. It was almost as if they knew everything there was to know about her, as if there were no secrets she could keep from them, and yet she knew nothing about them. They hadn’t even provided names let alone any details. Nothing except vague threats that seemed all hints and no clarity.

“What are your names?” she asked, immediately feeling all the eyes in the room turn to her. She was used to commanding the attention of entire rooms, but this was different. Usually she was the teacher, standing in front of her students, their eyes all on her. Here she was an outsider, accidentally having tumbled into a situation she had little understanding of. Sirius seemed almost afraid, a bravery at his core holding him standing confidently but it was clearly all bravado. He was as defenceless as her against the two intruders. There was a silence, and Minerva regretted speaking. It seemed like it might not have been a great idea, another piece of evidence proving that she was well out of her depth.

The man and woman exchanged amused glances, as if she were an interesting form of entertainment. There seemed to be something communicated between them in the twitch of the man’s eyebrow and the lift of the woman’s red lips. Their attention returned to her, lazily and as if they were humouring a particularly stupid child.

“A name?” the man asked, as if she had told a particularly funny joke, and yet not one funny enough to make him laugh. Minerva swallowed. The woman pursed her lips, a gesture that bordered on seductive, looking like she was midway through blowing a kiss. The stillness continued, stretching seconds into hours.

“I suppose…” the man said, as if he were a cat toying with a mouse, cruelly prolonging the pain before the killing blow.

“You can call me Lily,” the woman continued, their words fitting smoothly with each other, as if they could read each other’s mind. She leant forward as she did so, amusement sparkling in her eyes, cleavage displayed distractingly.

“And you can call me Severus, if names are that important to you,” the man finished, looking for all the world like a king on his throne, lounging in command, though he was just a man in another man’s threadbare armchair. Minerva felt like he controlled her world, like he held her life in his hands. She couldn’t see a weapon on him, unlike the hint she had had from Lily, but she imagined that he had something to kill them stored on his person, hidden beneath the clean lines of the suit. 

Minerva nodded, no longer particularly caring what they had answered. Their names were in many ways entirely irrelevant, and she doubted they would give her their real ones anyway. She was just glad that they had not been angry. She had no idea if they meant to kill her and Sirius but she didn’t want to find out. That they could if they wanted to she had no doubt. They radiated danger. They had clearly broken in without any obvious signs, no hint of smashed glass or destruction. They had also been able to lock the door after them, delaying the realisation that they lurked inside awaiting Sirius’s return. Minerva didn’t know if it was a good thing that she had come upstairs with him or not.

She wondered how she would have felt if she had dropped him off and said goodbye. Would she have woken up to the news that he had been murdered in the night and forever be haunted by questions of what she could have done differently? Would she have simply assumed that she had misread all the signs and that he wasn’t interested in her, or that she’d chased him away somehow, and that that was why she was hearing nothing from him, agonising over their interactions in an attempt to pinpoint the problem, only to later find out that he’d disappeared? Vanished away, presumed dead. 

“I would suggest you go and have a good night’s sleep,” Severus said, his suggestion clearly an order that neither Minerva nor Sirius dared to disobey, a flick of his slender fingers dismissing them from the flat despite it being Sirius’s. Obediently, then both turned and left, green and black eyes watching them go. Numbly they returned to Minerva’s car, Sirius still clutching his bag wordlessly. For lack of a better option, Minerva drove them back to her house.

Sirius had not honestly expected to end up in bed with Minerva, even in his best case scenario. He had definitely thought about it, though. What he had been hoping for was some kind of hint suggesting the potential for moving forward into a relationship. In his vague fantasies of spending the night in Minerva’s bed, at some unspecified future point, he had not included details like wearing a pair of her tartan pyjamas or that he’d be wrapped up in her arms, trembling after the shock of his life. She stroked comforting circles on his back.

“My little brother was called Regulus,” he whispered into the darkness, knowing that she was still awake.

“Was?” Minerva asked, her hand pausing in its motion.

“I think… I think they killed him…” Sirius admitted, grief welling up from deep within. Minerva accepted that. She could imagine the two they had met as being perfectly capable of murder, especially of someone that seemed to be in their way. While they had claimed that Regulus had stolen something of theirs, Minerva didn’t entirely trust that whatever it was had legally belonged to the two in the first place.

The night was still, though as always she could pick up faint sounds. Normally she would just consider them to be animals outside, the general sounds of the world that weren’t to be worried about. But every sound made her feel like there were intruders in her house, that Severus and Lily were walking about upstairs, their cold eyes and light fingers picking their way through all of her belongings, their presence covering every inch of her home in darkness. She shuddered slightly and hugged Sirius closer.

“My family is well off and has a long history that isn’t exactly legal…” Sirius continued, his voice a quiet murmur. 

Minerva kept her peace. She knew if she stayed quiet he would talk, spilling what details he could bear to. This was what had gone unsaid in their day together, the history he had avoided. Parts of it, at least. She doubted she would get the full story in one go. Maybe had they grown to know each other, fallen in love and built a relationship of trust he would have opened up to her in time. However, his hand had been forced, and like it or not she was now involved. 

“I didn’t want to become involved in the family business, so I ran away. Severed all contact with my family, left school before my A-levels and disappeared. Hid away here, making a new life for myself. I loved Regulus, but he was always the favoured son, and seemed to have no intention of getting out. I wish I could have done something, but he was happy. Maybe I should have done more, instead of just leaving… But I could never risk contacting him incase my family found me…”

Minerva combed her fingers through his hair, softly comforting him. She was shaken badly by their encounter with the two strangers, but not nearly as badly as Sirius had been. It wasn’t her history that had returned from the dead. She could delay her distress until later, pouring all of her energy into looking after him. It helped her stay calm and rational, a practical problem lay before her that she could solve. She could do nothing about Severus and Lily. They were far beyond her area of expertise. 

“Do you have any idea what they want?” she asked, not expecting a positive answer. Sirius shook his head.

“Do you know them?” she asked, and he shook his head again.

“Severus and Lily…” she breathed, the names running through her mind.

“They’re false names, of course,” Sirius said, his voice slightly muffled but certain, “Lily could maybe be a real name, under normal circumstances, but a flower especially one associated with death doesn’t make me confident. And then Severus, I’ve never even heard of anyone called Severus, there’s no way it’s his real name. It’s probably a message of some kind, but I’m too out of the loop to know what it means. Lily and Severus, Severus and Lily…”

Minerva nodded, though he couldn’t see it, she imagined he could probably feel it. It made sense, but it was still helpful to have something to call them by, even if they were strange code names with deep, ominous meanings. She thought that Sirius and Regulus were fairly strange names too, easily as unusual as Severus, but she would gain nothing by mentioning that.

“I think there was a Roman Emperor or something called Severus…” she murmured, the memory vague.

“Do you know anything about him?” Sirius asked, a sudden flurry of action and excitement, “That might give us some kind of clue…”

But Minerva shook her head, “I know very little about the Romans or their Emperors. I don’t even know if he was actually an Emperor. And I have no books that I can think of that would have that kind of information, anything that I might be able to find would be at the uni library and we can’t really go there right now, and tomorrow morning…”

She didn’t need to finish the sentence. Sirius slumped back down into the bed, all the fight going out of him. There was nothing much they could do, except try to sleep and do as they had been instructed the following morning.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Lily and Severus have either appeared or been mentioned in every single chapter so far.


	6. Chapter 6

Minerva and Sirius arrived at his garage with over fifteen minutes to spare. Neither of them had slept well, and they had been anxious to not be late. Severus and Lily had not specified what would happen if they were, which had allowed their imaginations to run wild. Minerva had packed a small bag and put it in the boot, along with Sirius’s bag. She had added in the pyjamas he had worn the night before to his stuff. They had gone through it, but it was just clothes and necessities like a toothbrush. The normal kinds of things that a person might take with them for a few nights away from home. No clues that might hint at what was planned.

They waited nervously until ten, then became more restless as the minutes ticked by. Each one seemed to last forever, with no sign of Lily or Severus. Minerva felt like she had sat in the car for hours, but it was only quarter past ten when she heard the boot slam shut. Startled, both her and Sirius turned to look behind them as the backdoors of the car opened and in slipped Lily and Severus. They looked different in the light of day, more normal. It helped that they were both more casually dressed, like just a normal young couple going about their everyday lives. Severus had in his hands a piece of paper, which he passed to Minerva. She took it, noticing that it was covered in handwriting, clearly printed and impersonal.

“Drive,” he said, as both he and Lily fastened their seatbelts. She glanced at the words written, noticing that they seemed to be instructions guiding her to a location. She passed it to Sirius, who took it just as uncomfortably as she had. There was a road atlas in the door of the front passenger seat, though Minerva wasn’t sure if the two in the back would be alright with them using it. The directions seemed to be familiar in parts to her, but not confident enough that she wouldn’t also appreciate the backup of a consultation with the map. She would feel slightly more reassured if Sirius could use both the directions and the map, but she didn’t want to risk angering Lily or Severus.

“Can we use the map as well?” she asked nervously, gesturing towards it.

“Yes,” Lily answered, her voice ice cold, “But don’t deviate from the route,”

Minerva nodded, carefully checking the directions one last time before she pulled out. She wondered what Lily and Severus had put in her boot. She hoped it was just overnight bags like hers and Sirius’s, rather than anything to kill them. Or anyone else for that matter.

As she drew out of the garage, starting on a trip that she hoped she would survive, Severus said suddenly, “Put some music on,”

“I only have Runrig,” Minerva answered nervously, though Sirius was already opening the glove compartment to find a tape.

“That’s fine,” Lily snapped impatiently.

Sirius didn’t seem to be paying much attention to what he was choosing, merely shoving the first tape he found into the opening. Minerva recognised it quickly as being The Highland Connection and hoped that Lily and Severus wouldn’t find any reason to object to it. Somehow she could imagine them objecting to all kinds of things just for the sake of objecting, though maybe that was just because of their introduction. They didn’t seem like particularly likeable people.

She barely listened to the music, focusing on the driving and following the directions to the letter. Sirius too seemed to be subdued in comparison to any other time she had spent time with him, a shadow of the man she had come to know. He sat quietly in the passenger seat, the road atlas open on his lap and the written directions in his hands. 

He was a good navigator, clearly stating the instructions with plenty of time, ensuring that they kept to the route that had been set for them. His voice was lacking in the warmth and joy that she had come to associate with him though, clinical and withdrawn. Minerva recognised some of the roads, feeling like they were winding back on themselves on more than one occasion but feeling utterly unable to say as such. Had it been just her and Sirius in the car it would have been a lovely day out. The sun was shining, not strongly enough to cause her problems but enough to give the landscape a touch of honied gold to it, bringing out the full glory of the greenery around them.

The two in the back prevented the journey from being enjoyable, though they didn’t speak to the two in the front. Minerva realised the reason they hadn’t cared what music it was as they drove, because it was there to muffle the transferal of sound between the front and the back of the car rather than for the sake of listening to the actual music. Whether or not Lily and Severus were talking she wasn’t certain, but she knew that with music on they could easily be holding quiet conversations without her or Sirius hearing a single word. She hoped they weren’t talking of how to kill them and dispose of the bodies, her mind discomforted by the thought, unable to stop thinking it once it had drifted into her head.

She tried to ignore it, tried to focus once more on the desolate scenery around them. As far as she could tell they were winding their way towards and along Loch Lomond, almost as if they were taking the longest route possible. When they did arrive at the destination that Sirius carefully navigated her to using the directions they had been given, she felt a flurry of fury. It was a picnic spot, idyllic and beautiful, on the shores of Loch Lomond. She knew that they could have arrived there much quicker by a much more direct route rather than the winding one they had so diligently taken, worrying over every single twist and turn, careful not to take the wrong road.

From the boot a picnic was produced, and the four of them sat down on a picnic bench to eat it. Theoretically it should have been a pleasant experience, though there had clearly been little effort involved in the making of the sandwiches that emerged from the bag. There was no choice in flavour, as far as Minerva could tell they were all peanut butter sandwiches, though there was also the possibility that she had just been given those and that Severus or Lily had made themselves slightly nicer sandwiches, but somehow she doubted it. There was little attention paid to the dividing of the sandwiches as far as Minerva could tell. The silence was uncomfortable, making Minerva miss the sound of Runrig at least providing some kind of background noise.

Had the circumstances been different she would presumably have delighted in the soft lapping of the water against the shore, the gentle sounds of nature, but she was too on edge to appreciate such things. Her nerves felt like they were jangling, afraid of what would happen next and disconcerted by the silence of those that probably counted as her kidnappers. 

“Loch Lomond, like the song,” Sirius said, clearly an attempt to ease the silence. It didn’t work very well. Minerva could think of nothing really to say. She was full of questions, but she could see no hope of answer, and there was little to talk about really. Severus and Lily seemed uninterested in having a conversation with them, focusing on eating their sandwiches.

Minerva hesitated as she raised hers to her mouth. A fear of poison ran through her mind, and she looked suspiciously at the others. Lily had handed them out, though without seeming to put much thought into who got which sandwich. But that could easily have been already arranged, a way of casually fooling her and Sirius into a false sense of security, before killing them. It seemed a little bit more public than Minerva would have considered ideal for a murder spot, as while there were no other people at the picnic spot it wasn’t entirely deserted. Loch Lomond was a popular location after all, especially in the summer. Severus seemed to notice her uncertainty.

“The only thing that’s poisoned is the tea,” he said, the corner of his lips twitching upwards as he poured himself a cup from the flask, sipping the hot tea. In anyone else it might have been a hint of a smile, but there was nothing warm about it and any amusement there might have been was clearly at her expense. 

Minerva shook herself and bit into the sandwich. It didn’t seem like they were going to be poisoned there at least, though she was very unhappy about the situation. The idea that they had been threatened only to be taken out for a nice picnic seemed ludicrous.

“What’s the song about?” Sirius asked, clearly trying his best to engage her in conversation, “Why can’t he ever meet his true love on the banks of Loch Lomond again?”

Minerva felt a shiver pass through her as she answered, almost reluctantly, “I only know what I’ve been told. There are two men, who’ve been captured by the English. The singer will be executed at dawn, so he’ll never meet his true love again but his soul will take the low road back to Scotland. The other will take the high road, the physical road through the land carrying his body back as a warning…”

She didn’t like to think of that, not when she was already afraid of being killed. Not when Severus and Lily seemed to exchange thoughtful looks at her words. She hoped that she hadn’t given them any ideas. Sirius fell silent, clearly regretting having asked. It didn’t lift the mood by any means. Once they’d finished eating, once more they were ushered back into the car. Another set of directions were handed to Minerva, who after looking them over once handed them to Sirius for navigating.

They once again drove, the same tape repeating over and over again with neither Minerva nor Sirius thinking to change it, their thoughts elsewhere. From the back there were no objections to the constant repetition, so it continued. Minerva drove onwards, trying to figure out where they could possibly be heading from the landscape and the at times seemingly random directions. They stopped for a quick meal in a cafe in the early evening, better food than the sandwiches that had served as lunch but Minerva barely tasted her Scotch broth. She normally loved it, enjoying the rustic warmth it provided, but it could have been anything. Her mind was too distracted, the stress of the situation too much, the brief stop lasting even less time than the lunchtime one had done. Sirius paid, an act that she couldn’t help but think was unfair in many respects, but there were no objections merely obedience leading to once more returning to their drive that seemed like it would be never-ending.

When they pulled up at their final destination for the day, a B&B that Minerva was certain they could have taken a far quicker route to get to, it felt like the day had lasted forever. That was probably in part due to the twisting roads they had driven down, under a constant aura of stress. Had the car been full of friendly chatter and a generally more cordial atmosphere the combination of the music and the scenery that suited each other so well would have made for a rather pleasant drive. Unfortunately, both of those aspects had been negated by the constant lurking threat in the back of the car. Minerva had been unable to relax and she knew that Sirius too was tense.

Obediently, they climbed out of the car, Minerva stretching gratefully. They had taken regular breaks throughout the day, which was something Minerva had not complained about but the manner in which she had been sharply ordered from the car for them had not made them a pleasant experience, more a case of regularly expecting to be murdered amongst the rolling greenery of whatever lay-by they had stopped at, only to once more return to the task of driving the car to whatever destination Lily and Severus had decided, always wondering and worrying what would come next.

It was as she stretched that she noticed the change in Lily and Severus. Whereas for the majority of the day they had been completely normal versions of the people she had met the night before, now they had changed, clearly a feat accomplished during the final leg of their journey, hidden away in the back of the car. Logically she knew the two people that emerged from her car must be the same two that had entered it, and the voice that had ordered them all out had clearly been Severus’s, but had she not known that she would not have recognised them. 

In their place were two people she had never met before. An older man, older than Severus had been, who Minerva would have placed to be her age, his hair a neat, dark grey, his face lightly lined. His eyes were still the ominously black eyes that Severus had had, the eyes that made her uncomfortable, certain that people didn’t normally have black eyes, but also certain that they really were startlingly black. He wore perfectly normal clothing, slightly different from the style that Severus had been dressed in when she last saw him, as if the previous wardrobe suited a younger man and the new alterations perfectly matching not only the older man he had become but also to an extent her, she realised with a growing dread.

Lily had not changed in age, remaining much more similar to the woman Minerva had been driving about all day, but her hair had become an auburn brown. It took Minerva a moment to realise what it was about her that she found so disconcerting, before it sank in. Lily now looked not entirely dissimilar to the way Minerva had once looked, back when she was her age. Not identical, more like the way Minerva might have looked had her genetic make up been blended with the man that Severus was portraying. Her eyes were a bolder green than Minerva’s, but still Minerva was certain that anyone glancing at them would assume the two to be mother and daughter.

She glanced at the man she assumed must be Severus, her heart sinking. While she had been staring at them, they had removed the bags from the boot. As she dreaded, Severus held on to hers as Lily passed the bag she knew to be Sirius’s as well as another, larger one to Sirius. Lily placed her arm in Sirius’s, pulling him close in a gesture that sparked a hint of something that Minerva suspected was either jealously or fear. Sirius resisted for a moment, but then Lily whispered something into his ear and he seemed to melt into her embrace, the two of them looking all the world like a couple.

Any further observations of them was halted when Minerva felt Severus’s arm warp itself around her shoulders. He kept their belongings firmly in his grasp, and Minerva found herself powerless to resist. He had no need to whisper threats to her, as she presumed Lily had done to ensure Sirius’s good behaviour. The strength in his arm was a clear indication that he was not the mild, older gentleman he had remodelled his face to be, but rather a dangerous young man who could probably cause her a lot of pain with very little effort. 

She felt a slight chill as Severus took her left hand in his and without even looking at her pushed a ring onto her ring finger. She was afraid to struggle, aware that she would not win a physical fight. She automatically followed where he directed her, the strength overpowering and forcing her to step with him after the other two. The ring fitted perfectly, too perfectly. She glanced down at it, distracted by that detail. She felt a shiver of horror pass through her, recognising the ring as her own. She hadn’t worn it since the divorce, leaving it shoved in the back of her jewellery box. The idea that Severus had been in her house, rummaging through her things and stealing her jewellery filled her with a sense of violation that kept her silent with shock, allowing him to steer her into the B&B.

To the B&B staff who greeted them she was certain that they looked like an older couple staying with their daughter and her husband, though Minerva had no way of knowing if the ring she glimpsed on Lily’s hand was a genuine artefact from a wedding ceremony like her own was or just a prop she used as a part of her disguise to be discarded at will. The red haired woman who had threatened her had worn no ring. Severus spoke, no longer the neutral accent that he had used before but a gentle Scottish accent that, had Minerva not known better, would have fooled her into believing he was born and raised in the Stirling area. Lily too, cheerfully greeted the staff in the same accent, playing the part of their daughter.

A part of her wanted to cry out to the staff, to ask them for help, but Minerva was overcome with helplessness. She wanted to be saved, but couldn’t imagine that anything she said would be believable, that Severus and Lily would suavely cover over any problems she might cause, and that she would suffer for it later. She was numb inside, almost chained and tamed by the wedding ring now returned to her finger, where it both seemed to fit like an old friend and also was a strange reminder of the person she had almost forgotten she once was. As Lily dragged Sirius into one of the rooms, Minerva felt herself forced into another, the door shutting firmly on the corridor and leaving her alone with Severus.


	7. Chapter 7

The room itself was quaint, a cosy little room filled with a welcoming double bed covered in lush blue sheets. The wallpaper was old fashioned, like the building, but obviously well cared for. There were flowers in a vase on the bedside table, adding a splash of colour to the room. Two armchairs were positioned either side of a small table. They were a faded floral, the kind with hard arms and a stiff back but perfectly serviceable. Had they really been a couple stopping for the night, it would have been a wonderful place to stay, homely and warm. But the man with her was not her husband, he wasn’t even her friend. He was at best a stranger, at worst she didn’t really want to consider what he might be. Someone to fear, someone she feared and someone she did not want to be alone with. 

“Get ready for bed,” the man who Minerva knew to be Severus said, no longer in the pleasant Scottish accent he had used for the benefit of the staff, returning to the cold, neutral voice she was starting to find unpleasantly familiar. A voice she had quickly become accustomed to obeying instantly. He handed her her bag, dumping his own on the floor with little care. Minerva took the bag in her hands, frozen as chilly tendrils of fear crawled through her. The innocent ingenue trapped with a moustache twirling villain, only she was not a young virgin and he was still wrapped in the trappings of a good, normal man. 

The man before her was a strange mixture of the young, ruthless Severus that she feared and a good-natured older man she might have liked had he been real. As if he was an amalgamation of the older man he was pretending to be and the younger man that she assumed was either his true self or at the very least a closer imitation of the truth than his disguise. His appearance was still very much the former, but his body language had shifted back to being the latter. She wondered how they would appear to anyone outside the room, knowing that the vice-like grip that he had exerted on her had probably seemed to be an affectionate embrace to anyone else not grasped entirely within his power.

Severus sat down in one of the armchairs, and gave her an impatient glare. She clutched her bag to her chest, as if it might provide a barrier between the two of them. She doubted she could run faster than him, if she tried to run away. He was definitely stronger than her, the memory of his arm around her left her with no doubt as to that. His words from the night before echoed through her mind, the casual assessment of her looks. Then he gestured in an almost irritated fashion towards the ensuite bathroom and Minerva felt a slight hint of something akin to relief. 

The bathroom was cheerfully decorated, though the shells that adorned the walls did little to penetrate Minerva’s sense of dread. Miserably she brushed her teeth and changed into her tartan pyjamas, grateful that they were so practical. Full coverage, unisex style and utterly lacking in eroticism. It didn’t make any difference, she knew, but it made her feel slightly better. More like the strong woman she knew herself to be, rather than just a helpless, hopeless victim. Even though she was entirely at his mercy.

Reluctantly, she returned to the room. He had not moved, his clothing was the same as when she had left him and he still wore the face of a man he was not. Maybe had the situation been different she would have marvelled at the talent he and Lily had displayed, at their ability to change their appearance, their voices and even their body language so thoroughly, but she had no time or energy to give though to that. He remained seated in the armchair as she kept her distance from him, sitting awkwardly on the bed, feeling small and defenceless. 

“Sleep,” he said, as if it was the kind of thing that could be ordered so easily, though it was a far better order than some of the alternatives her mind was providing, her imagination running wild. Minerva doubted she would be able to sleep, not in a strange room with a strange man. She felt a shiver run down her spine at the thought of sharing a bed with him, of sleeping next to someone like him. The ring on her finger felt like it was no different to a handcuff, a constant, hard, metal reminder that he had been in her house, invisibly taking her belongings as it pleased him. She felt a moment of anger, a passionate flare of courage. She had always been brave, she was there because she had been a brave woman who confronted danger head on, not because she was a timid creature to be cowed by threats.

“Sure you’re alright with your Lily sleeping with Sirius?” she asked, pushing viciously in the hopes of breaking his cool facade, though common sense screamed at her that angering him was probably not the wisest choice. She was too tired and too frustrated to care, lashing out in the faint chance of wounding him in some way, even if it was through weak words.

He looked at her, unimpressed. Minerva was on the one hand relieved that he wasn’t angry with her, but on the other hand she was disappointed that he still seemed to completely relaxed, so utterly unflappable. It also made her wonder, as she spoke the words, what it was that bound the two of them together. Mercenary mutual interest or something more human. They seemed to move and flow seamlessly, able to complete each other’s thoughts with ease, as if they knew each other deeply and intimately, to the point that they almost shared a mind. It might just have been because of good planning, a well-orchestrated plan, or maybe it was a connection the two of them shared.

“She’s not my Lily,” he said calmly, almost amused, “She’s her own person. She does what she wants, though I doubt that will involve anything you might be imagining with Sirius. He’s not her type, as well as him being far too wrapped up in his feelings for you,”

For a moment there was silence, then he seemed to sink further into the armchair, no longer sitting with the poise she had initially associated with him but slouching down, long legs stretching across the floor. She wondered if one of the two was the boss, with the other as a subordinate, if there was someone above them in some criminal gang or if they were just two people working together. She wondered if there were jealousies and emotions between them that she could exploit, frictions that could be ignited to cause some kind of fracture in the smooth, united front they had displayed. Having Severus alone with her did provide that opportunity at least, even if Minerva wasn’t feeling optimistic. 

“What is her type then?” Minerva asked, still searching for something to needle him with, wincing as she spoke the words, torn between wanting to get under his skin and not actually wanting to anger him. It seemed like a pointless question, one she asked almost out of curiosity at the confident way in which Severus had dismissed the idea of Lily being in any way attracted to Sirius. She fiddled with her wedding ring, uncomfortable at having it once more returned to her finger. She was not the woman she had been when Dougal had placed it upon her finger, and Severus returning it to the same finger did not bind her to him the way it had bound her to Dougal. 

Severus looked at her long and hard, then shifted in his seat slightly. There was a strange look on his face, an eyebrow rising in what Minerva almost thought was amusement. His hand floated upwards, framing his face with a casual gesture. It took Minerva a moment to guess that rather than answering directly he was confidently indicating Lily’s preference to be him, though given that he was made up to be an entirely different man she did also briefly wonder if maybe he meant that Lily liked older men. Or maybe that he was mocking her, drawing a comparison between himself and Sirius and clearly considering himself to be the superior specimen. 

Minerva wondered briefly if probing away at that topic might irritate Severus, or if she’d continue to amuse him. It didn’t seem likely that she would be able to drive a wedge in between the two of them, more that she would eventually annoy him with what he seemed to consider to be inane and irrelevant questions. He seemed either unconcerned with what was happening in the other room or entirely uninterested. She briefly considered raising the possibility of whether Sirius could take Lily in a fight, but she imagined that he would laugh at the idea. Lily hadn’t needed to use the threat of physical force to make him behave on their way into the B&B, and she had a sneaking suspicion that despite being physically smaller than Sirius Lily would probably be absolutely capable of defeating with little difficulty. 

“Sleep,” he repeated, though the tone was more gentle now, almost tired, as if he was worn out from having to repeat the order, “There’ll be more driving tomorrow,”

Minerva reluctantly shuffled under the covers, still uncomfortable. She lay down, tense and unhappy. Severus stood up, a fluidly graceful movement that belonged to the ominous young man she had first met not the one he had rearranged his face to be, crossing the floor to the light switch. The room was plunged into darkness, and Minerva trembled slightly. She heard soft footsteps, but as her eyes adjusted she saw that he had returned to his position in the chair, settling in as if he intended to either sleep there or watch her throughout the night.

“Sleep,” he repeated impatiently, “You’ll have the bed to yourself, unless you desperately want otherwise, which I can’t imagine you do,”

Minerva felt a slight sense of relief wash through her. He might have effectively kidnapped her and may have potentially been involved in the murder of Sirius’s younger brother, but for a moment he seemed almost kind. His voice was gentler than it had been during the day, when it had mostly been a series of sharp orders that neither her nor Sirius dared to consider disobeying. As if he wasn’t quite as bad as she had initially believed him to be. She wasn’t keen on sleeping in the same room as him, but she was much happier to have him in the chair rather than the bed.

She doubted she would sleep well, her mind wandering to thoughts of Sirius and Lily in the other room, worries of what the next day would bring. She wondered how Sirius was managing, what it was that Lily had whispered in his ear. Was he sleeping, in a bed alone or with Lily by his side, was he sleeping in a chair or on the floor? Was the atmosphere tense, or was he able to connect with Lily, finding a shared knowledge that she was sure he must have, dredging up his past to find common ground with the woman who had crashed into his life reawakening the ghosts of the life he had tried to leave behind?

Minerva was almost surprised when Severus woke her up the following morning, abruptly disturbing the sleep she had somehow managed to fall into despite everything, exhaustion overtaking everything else. She didn’t think she had slept well, though that could be in part due to the sense of dread that lingered. Reluctantly, she dragged herself from the bed and prepared herself for the day ahead, with no idea as to what it might bring.

She didn’t know if Severus had slept, but he seemed to have changed clothes and was entirely ready to head to breakfast by the time he woke her, almost impatient at her having to ready herself for the day. She once again changed hurriedly in the bathroom, washing quickly and speeding her way through her routine to present herself fully dressed before him. At the same time, she felt a certain calm. She had slept all night, fitfully and with no small amount of dread it was true, but without any harm coming to her. 

Severus hadn’t even touched her once they entered the room, though she imagined had she tried to escape or resist his orders he might have physically restrained her. But that seemed like something to maintain his control over her, something he would almost be annoyed at having to actually bother to do. Aside from whatever it was he had planned for her at the end of their journey, it seemed almost as if he didn’t mean her any harm. He could easily have killed her during the night, or violated her with no one to interject in her defence, tortured her or generally mistreated her but he had done nothing of the sort. He could even have made her sleep on the floor or in one of the armchairs, claiming the bed for himself had he wanted to sleep, but instead he had let her change in private and sleep alone in the bed, untouched. It wasn’t exactly kind, as he was still effectively her kidnapper, but it was comforting in some ways. As if maybe he wasn’t quite as bad as she had initially feared.

Breakfast itself was a quiet affair. The food was good, a hearty fry up that Minerva tried to enjoy but didn’t think she managed to do it justice. Severus and Lily both chattered cheerfully, as if they were the people they appeared to be rather than the people she knew them to be. Sirius looked tired, as if he had slept less then her, though he seemed to be smiling at Lily as if the two of them were really a couple. Minerva was quiet, wondering if her exhaustion showed on her face. If her unhappiness was visible to anyone watching, if they would wonder why she was so unhappy with her circumstances.

She played with her wedding ring, wanting to take it off. A part of her wanted to throw it away, or maybe throw it at Severus. It seemed like an overdramatic scene that might happen between a married couple on the brink of divorce in a film or a TV show. A passionate argument signalling the beginning of the end, the symbol of their love that should have lasted forever thrown in anger, returned violently to the man who had placed it on her finger. She left it where it was, disliking the feeling of it there. It felt alien, now that she was used to no longer wearing it. It brought back memories she didn’t want to be reminded of, as well as the creeping sensation of her home having been so casually violated.

“You alright darling?” Severus asked, only he wasn’t Severus, he was her kindly husband, concerned that his wife seemed to be a bit dispirited. He tilted his head slightly, as if concerned, taking her hand in his. Under the table she felt his leg press against hers, a gentle yet firm rub of his foot against her shin. It should have been a flirtatious, sexy gesture but she knew it was a threat. She smiled and nodded, playing the role assigned to her.

Had it been Sirius across the table from her, his leg against hers on a day trip out, she would have felt differently, welcomed the flirtation and enjoyed the touch. But it wasn’t, it was just a calm reminder that she should behave herself. She wondered for a brief, sudden moment if Sirius and Lily were touching under the table, a hint of jealousy flaring unhelpfully. She wasn’t sure, for a moment, if Sirius was playing along out of experience of abductions and crime from his youth or if he was briefly infatuated with the dangerous young woman opposite him. Maybe the fact that she was currently looking so very much like a younger version of Minerva made the whole issue so hard for her, insecurity creeping in. Just like Dougal had traded her in for a newer model, a young girlfriend after a wife of his own age, only with Sirius it would be transferring from an older woman to one his own age. 

Severus, good to his words of the night before, seemed entirely unconcerned. She wondered why those two who were so good at acting, at remaking themselves, were here when they could be Hollywood stars, or at the very least an actors of some kind. Alternatively, make up artists of some kind, recreating faces in the way they had managed in the back of a car on the move. Why were they bothering with her and Sirius? She doubted that they could really provide much financial benefit to them. They hadn’t even asked for money, now that Minerva thought of it, as if money was not a concern, just as they had let chances to kill them pass by without any action. Severus had entirely ignored his clear and easy opportunity to take sexual advantage of her. They had fed them throughout the previous day and even ensured that they slept somewhere comfortable.

She was unhappy at the prospect of breakfast being over, at leaving the B&B behind and returning to her car, but she felt there was little choice. She might have been able to try and hide in the B&B, escape away, though that would be difficult, only that would mean she would have to abandon Sirius and for all that it was his past connections that had caused her to become entangled in her current situation she was still unwilling to leave him to Lily and Severus’s mercy. She wasn’t sure if they had much mercy in them. Even if she had had a moment of suspicion of him too, she still had a lot of faith in him. Just like she was still wary of Lily and Severus, despite the fact that they had not actually done anything to hurt her thus far. All she knew was that she had come this far so she would continue to see it through, waiting for an opportunity to extract the both of them.


	8. Chapter 8

They all piled into the car, each of them taking up their respective positions from the day before, as if it were a routine they had all become accustomed to. Minerva driving, Sirius beside her. Severus was behind her, and Lily was beside him. Once more a sheet of directions were handed to her, which she gave to Sirius, and they set off driving. Runrig played in the background, the tape having been changed to their album Recovery. Sirius tried to stretch as best he could in the passenger seat, careful not to drop the road atlas balanced on his lap. He yawned slightly. She looked across at him, affection warring with the worry that pervaded her every conscious thought.

“I barely slept,” he admitted quietly, rolling his neck as if it was stiff, “I didn’t mean to sleep at all. We sat opposite each other on chairs, not talking just a staring contest of sorts. I intended to keep watching her all night, but I guess I fell asleep eventually. She woke me up for breakfast. I don’t think she slept at all, but at least she didn’t seem to do anything except watch me…”

“…I don’t think Severus slept either…” Minerva said, thoughtfully. She glanced down at her hand on the steering wheel. She was still wearing her wedding ring, a remnant of both her old life when she had been married to a man who for all his faults at least had never involved her in what felt like some kind of kidnapping, as well as a reminder of the casual way in which Lily and Severus had disguised themselves. It made her wonder, though she didn’t feel like she had much brain power to devote to wondering about things. Her focus was on the road, on the constant turns and detours that never seemed to lead them anywhere. 

As they drove, Minerva thought for a while that they were heading for the west coast, meandering through winding roads, until they stopped for lunch. Her and Sirius sat once again with two people they had never met before. Minerva had been briefly surprised when two middle-aged women stepped from her car, but then she had adjusted. It didn’t really matter what they looked like, she knew now that they were Lily and Severus.

Lunch was quiet, the conversation the two women provided being about the intention for a good long walk in the highlands. They had Scottish accents, no longer Stirling area but gently coloured by Edinburgh. Severus made a less beautiful woman than Lily, though the style of his brown hair softened his features. Minerva had to admit that she was impressed, as had she not been absolutely certain that the woman before her was in fact Severus she would never have guessed. Lily was blonde, her hair unflatteringly short, with glasses that didn’t quite suit her face. Both of them were wearing unisex clothing, practical for a day out hiking in the highlands. Loose enough to give no particular hints as to the body shape of either of them.

Once lunch was over, however, and the never-ending drive continued, the directions changed suddenly, taking them eastwards. The roads were no more straight than any of the other ones that they had taken, always seeming to choose the narrowest lane for the direction they were going, though the direction seemed to Minerva to be vague and changeable, fluctuating with every turn she took. After what felt like an eternity of winding roads that seemed to twist back on themselves, they arrived in the grey granite city of Aberdeen. Minerva was deeply annoyed at not only the whole day of driving, but also the driving of the day before. She had suspected that they were winding their way in a longer route than necessary, but this seemed just another confirmation of that belief. 

“We could have just driven straight here, much quicker,” she muttered, loudly enough that Sirius could hear her complaint but not that Lily or Severus would pick up on it. She still continued to follow the directions she was being told by Sirius, passing through the city heading towards the harbour, though she had long since given up any hope that the direction that she was being guided towards was in any way their intended destination. That remained a mystery, every stop along the way being no indication of where the next set of directions would lead, each turn merely a precursor to a turn in the opposite direction. 

“Pull in when you can,” Severus said suddenly, leaning forward from his seat in the back to ensure that she heard him clearly. Minerva was surprised by the sudden deviation from the instructions, but did as she was told, grateful that it was a case of when she could rather than the usual order for immediate action that she had grown accustomed to. She pulled in by the side of the road, behind another car parked up against the pavement.

“Get out and leave the keys in the ignition,” Severus instructed in a tone of voice that left little room for argument. He didn’t seem like a man who was used to being argued with. Minerva felt a sudden wave of relief wash through her, thinking that the two of them were going to steal her car and drive off, leaving her and Sirius in Aberdeen. It was not exactly the kind of situation that she would otherwise have considered to be ideal, but she found that she was almost optimistic about the idea of having her relatively new car stolen and them having to make their way back to Kippen by public transport. It would be an end to the stress of never knowing where they were going and whether or not they were going to be killed. 

Minerva hoped that Lily and Severus would just take the car, not even caring about her overnight bag in the boot, perfectly happy to say goodbye to that and the new car in exchange for having her life return to some semblance of normality. To returning to her home, and maybe prying into Sirius’s past, safely. Before she could get her hopes up too far, however, Lily leant forward. Her arms draped their way around Sirius, wrapping him in a caricature of an embrace. The two of them were back to looking like what Minerva had started to assume was their normal selves, a man and woman of similar age to Sirius, not quite as glamorous as the time they had first met but along the same lines in their general appearance. Lily’s red hair spilled over Sirius’s shoulder, the colour that Minerva had decided to consider her natural colour though she realised it could just be a wig or dyed hair just as easily. Maybe all of their faces that she had seen were false ones. 

“Not you,” Lily purred in Sirius’s ear, loudly enough that Minerva could hear her words, “You can stay right where you are,”

Minerva got out, reluctantly. She was afraid now that she would be left alone, and that Sirius would remain a victim of whatever it was Lily and Severus had planned. A small part of her wondered if maybe overnight he had talked to Lily and decided to return to his old life, that maybe that was their entire objective and now it had been achieved. Maybe they would leave her there and the three of them would start their crime spree by stealing her car. At the same time, she couldn’t quite believe such a thing of the man she had thought she was beginning to know. He seemed to her to be so reluctant to even think of his past and his family, let alone even consider returning to it. 

She stretched, a moment of relief despite her thoughts. Aberdeen, for all that it was dull and nothing much to look at seemed to her to be a beautiful place, full of a promise of freedom that didn’t last long. Severus had also exited the car, and Minerva wondered for a brief moment if he was going to give her her overnight bag back, or some kind of parting farewell. She didn’t think he would harm her, as he had had plenty such opportunities that would have been far easier for him to take, yet he had yet to actually do anything to her except casually terrorise her.

Severus passed by her, saying, “Get in the back,” as he did so, robbing her of the brief moment of hope. She considered briefly running, but doubted she could outrun him. He was younger, and she presumed fitter. He was definitely stronger, which he reminded her of again by placing his hand on the small of her back, pushing firmly. It wasn’t rough, as if he didn’t feel a need to be overtly forceful, though actually wrestling her into the backseat of the car might have drawn a few looks. She doubted it, however, as the street was fairly deserted and she didn’t get the impression that anyone would particularly care. 

It was more a casual confidence of his own strength and ability surpassing hers, of the fact that she realistically had very little choice except to obey him. Or even, that he maybe didn’t even care about her that much, that while he had her he would use her but if she ran away he would simply shrug and continue using her car. Presumably it was Sirius who mattered most to them, more important than her to whatever their aims were. The fact that they hadn’t seemed to give any hints as to what those were confused her slightly, kept her constantly tense and unsure. She wondered, as she opened the car door, if Severus or Lily would be able to dress up as her, recreate her face and voice as easily as they had managed the characters they had demonstrated from the night before and lunchtime.

She sank into the backseat of the car, next to Lily who released her arms from where they had been clasped around Sirius’s shoulders, returning to her seat. Lily smiled, though it was not a particularly friendly smile. It was a calm smile, that asserted her control. They had moved from wanting to be able to talk privately in the back to being able to control the car entirely. Now Minerva regretted that she hadn’t driven away when she was the one driving, the powerlessness that came with the loss of the steering wheel taking her by surprise. She had disliked being made to drive them all around, but now she felt the sudden loss of control, wishing she was back at the wheel and at least nominally able to dictate her own destiny to some degree. She sank down into the seat, exhausted by the stress of driving through winding roads and worrying all the time.

She almost expected Lily to be holding a gun to the back of Sirius’s head, with another pointing at her, but there were no weapons on display. Minerva didn’t doubt that there were weapons hidden somewhere, or that Lily wouldn’t need a weapon to hurt her. She looked just like a perfectly normal young woman, sitting in the back of the car, though Minerva knew that appearances could be deceiving. 

Severus turned the key in the ignition, pulling out carefully. Minerva was somewhat relieved that he seemed to be a safe and competent driver at least. She wondered if he had a driving licence, and if it was registered to his actual name and face. Maybe he had a whole collection of forgeries, to use as will. The idea was turning itself over and over in her mind, that they could change their shapes and identities like chameleons, that they knew things about her before she even had met them. The wedding ring now in her pocket continued to bother her, like an itch at the edge of her mind, as if there was a detail she had forgotten, so small she had barely noticed it, slipping through the cracks. All around them were the normal streets of a normal city, containing normal people going about their normal lives. 

Severus drove them towards the harbour, with Sirius stopping the music that had provided the background sound to the car that lacked cheerful conversation. Presumably that was so that Lily and Severus could talk easily, without any distractions, though they didn’t. There was complete silence, nothing but the engine purring away as Severus switched smoothly through the gears, with the occasional tick of the indicator when turning. She had almost expected that Severus would start driving them in a completely new direction, taking them far away from where the directions had been leading then, but he seemed to be continuing to follow them. Sirius continued to navigate, though Minerva could see that his hands were clutching the atlas so tightly that his knuckles were white, his eyes trying to glance behind him to check on her without moving his body to show the line of his gaze. They were heading for the harbour, and that was clearly labelled. As they got closer, Minerva realised that they were heading for the ferry terminal, which made less sense than the harbour.

She knew from books and films that people disposed of bodies in harbours, though it did seem like a lot of effort to drive into a populated city to do so when Scotland had a lot of deserted coast that would have been just as good. A busy ferry terminal was an entirely different story. The only real reason she could think for them to be entering the ferry terminal was that they were going to get on the ferry, taking them away from Aberdeen. The harbour was like any other, practical and with seagulls swirling around above them. Severus drove her car to join the queue for the Shetland ferry, calmly passing over the booking for four people and a car. 

They stayed in the car, waiting in the line they were directed towards by the attendants. The other cars seemed to be filled with a wide variety of people, though she imagined all of them had known they were about to board a ferry for Shetland before they arrived at the harbour, unlike her and Sirius. People opened car doors, children eager to stretch their legs and parents quick to usher them away from where cars might drive. She wondered how many were families and other groups heading north for a holiday, a relaxing break of walking through the remote islands, rather than a mystery tour guided by two faintly malevolent people that seemed to be taking them to one place Minerva had definitely not considered to be a potential goal of their trip.

As they sat in the queue, waiting, the silence stretched on awkwardly. Minerva had nothing much to say to the car in general to change the atmosphere, and neither did she feel like it was something she was obliged to do. Had she been besides Sirius she might have whispered something to him, but there was nothing for her to say to Lily. Lily wasn’t interested in her, that much was clear, her attention flickering between the continued reminder of the threat she posed to both Minerva and Sirius and the constant observance of the harbour outside the car. Severus too was quiet, his gaze flickering between the mirrors of the car and the scene outside. He’d locked all the doors of the car, a sharp click preventing the rest of them from being able to open their doors in one quick motion. They could still unlock them, but it was just another small hint that they should do no such thing. She had always rather wanted to go to Shetland, one of the many destinations she had thought of going to but had never actually done so. It looked like there was a good chance that she would be going there now, though not under circumstances she had ever imagined she would find herself in. 

As they drove into the bowels of the great ferry, the world seemed to darken. It felt ominous to Minerva, though it was nothing more than going inside after having been out in the sunshine. She regretted not having made the decision to run away or attempt to escape earlier, as now she was on a ship, even if they had yet to leave port. She looked frantically about her, wondering if she and Sirius could maybe make an attempt at running out of the car deck, but Sirius was too far away from her for her to communicate any of her desperate thoughts to him

The time for escape had passed, and she only had to assume that Lily and Severus didn’t intend to murder them and throw them overboard. Logically, she assumed they weren’t going to. It had been her first thought, the panic shooting through her along with a sense of confinement, the cage having expanded from the car that she at least had been in control of, to a ship. But then she thought that if they had driven the car, which legally belonged to Minerva, containing the four of them onto the ferry, then if she and Sirius disappeared en route then suspicion would naturally fall on the two they had been with. It seemed like an awful lot of effort, given that they could presumably have just chucked their corpses off the harbour front, or even picked an isolated piece of the coast for disposing of them. It made Minerva curious, as if Severus and Lily had no intention of killing them but rather were bringing them somewhere, even if they weren’t being particularly nice about it. It made the mystery deeper, rousing her curiosity, making her want to know the answer to all of the mysteries. Almost making her want to see it all out to the end.

She felt a slight hint of worry for her new car as Severus manoeuvred it into the narrow space provided in the hold. To her relief, however, he seemed to be taking a lot of care to not accidentally scratch it, let alone cause any actual damage. Lily continued to glance around, green eyes roaming all over the darkened car deck.

As Severus killed the engine he asked quietly but clearly, “All good?”

“I think so,” Lily replied, her tone steady.


	9. Chapter 9

Wondering what the voyage would bring, Minerva followed Severus’s sharply uttered directions, taking her bag and walking up from the car deck to the passenger areas of the ship along with the vast throngs of people also sailing north. It was an overnight ferry, she knew that much, and in some ways she wasn’t surprised when she was ushered into a cabin with four bunks, the room small and feeling even smaller with all of them in close contact. She had shared a room with Severus the night before, but just standing in that small cabin she felt that she was closer to him than she had been all of the previous night. 

“Sirius, Lily, Minerva, me,” Severus said in quick succession, pointing at a bunk in turn. That meant that Minerva had one of the top bunks, above Severus. Sirius was on a bottom bunk, beneath Lily, preserving the same layout that they had had in the car as they drove into the ferry. They each placed their bags onto the assigned bunks, and Minerva wondered if they would be spending the entire time until they arrived in Lerwick in that small room. It would make for a cramped and miserable crossing. Almost as soon as the thought crossed her mind, Lily clapped her hands in a way that had circumstances been different might have been a cheerful way of getting everyone’s attention.

“Right, up on deck for some fresh air,” she said, which was more of an order than a suggestion. Obediently they trooped out, their coats still on. Lily locked the door, keeping the key in her jacket pocket, and they headed up through the ship to the deck.

They watched as the ferry departed, Aberdeen harbour growing smaller with the increasing distance until they were surrounded by nothing but the empty sea, with an expansive sky above them. Minerva was grateful that she had her coat, though if she had known she would be standing outside on a ferry heading northwards she would have brought warmer clothing. It was not a piece of information that Severus or Lily had seen fit to mention to them before their journey began. She didn’t know if it was because the decision to head to Shetland had been taken after they had left Kippen or if they simply hadn’t cared much about the comfort of either Minerva or Sirius.

The North Sea was cold, despite it being summer. The wind seemed to blow through Minerva, tugging relentlessly at her hair. She could smell the salt in the air, could almost taste it on her lips. She didn’t want to spend the entire trip cooped up in the small cabin, but she also didn’t want to spend the entire trip standing up on deck. Really, she wanted to feel free to do as she pleased. That would make the crossing far more comfortable. Minerva wanted to be free of Lily and Severus’s control, though a part of her had to admit that she was also deeply curious as to what they wanted and where they were heading. She was beginning to feel used to them, and at least semi-confident that they were not intending to kill her or Sirius.

She was also hoping that she might be able to have a port and brandy to settle her stomach before they returned to the confines of the cabin. She had always been prone to sea sickness. It was tolerable while on deck, though she also knew from experience that once they headed indoors again she was likely to feel unpleasantly queasy. She had never been a great swimmer either, always disliking the sensation of being in the water and hating the coldness of it. That had never helped, especially with rough crossings, as the combined fear of shipwrecks landing her in the cold water to struggle merely made her stomach more uneasy. Dougal had often laughed, teasing her about having a bit of cat in her with her, a joke which had grown old quickly. Minerva would have preferred sympathy and understanding, especially when she was suffering on a boat.

It was unfortunate that the sea sickness was easiest to cope with while she was on deck, but standing there was bitterly cold as well as completely impractical for a twelve-hour overnight crossing. She also knew that she was not able to chose freely depending on what was best for her, though after the previous night she had the confidence that Severus at least would show some consideration if she asked. At least, she hoped so. Maybe he had merely been vaguely honourable the night before to butter her up to better use her to his advantage. She rubbed her hands together, her fingers cold without gloves, wishing that she had brought a pair. She wished she had a hat too, cursing her lack of preparation and yet at the same time knowing that there was nothing she could do.

Sirius came up beside her, standing near her but keeping a slight distance between them. It was the first time that they had been almost alone together since Minerva had accepted Sirius’s invitation up to his small flat above his garage. It seemed like a lifetime ago, though Minerva knew it was no more than a couple of days. So much had changed, so quickly. Sirius had changed too, she realised. Had they been on a trip north under their own steam she couldn’t imagine that he would be standing there so awkwardly, but rather that he would be closer, maybe even touching her, and speaking in his cheerful chatter rather than silently morose. It was as if his confidence had been shattered along with the life he had painstakingly built for himself. Her heart went out to him, though she knew it was in many ways his fault that she had ended up in the position she was in. She turned to him, reaching out a cold hand to rest it on his forearm.

“How are you managing?” she asked softly, still caring for him. She could still feel the tendrils of attraction beneath the more pressing concerns of fear and discomfort. Closer contact made sense in the cold anyway, she reasoned.

“I’m sorry for getting you involved,” Sirius said heavily, the guilt clearly sill weighing heavily on his mind. Minerva felt so desperately sorry for him, as she knew he hadn’t intended to cause her any trouble. She shuffled a bit closer to him, snuggling her hand into the crook of his arm.

“It’s not your fault,” she said realistically, knowing that while he was the reason he had not intended anything they were experiencing to happen, “We’ll get through this just fine, it’s just a matter of time. And they aren’t too bad, really…”

She wasn’t really sure if that was a good description of Lily and Severus. They weren’t complete monsters, like she might read about in a book, whether fantasy fiction or true crime. But at the same time, they definitely weren’t nice. A part of her wondered if it could be Stockholm Syndrome that was making her feel less antagonistic towards the two, seeing them as not nearly as bad as they could be and therefore forgiving them for all the ways in which they were clearly holding her against her will through the use of causally implied threats. But she was also fairly confident that it required more time to develop, though she would be the first to admit she was not an expert. She wasn’t an expert at being abducted either. 

He sighed, relaxing a little into her, and for a moment she though he might actually embrace her, but he didn’t. They just stood close together, sharing the same space for an indeterminate length of time. Out of the corner of her eyes, Minerva could see Lily and Severus. They were nearby, though not close enough that they would be able to overhear any whispers, standing in a way that would have made them seem like just a normal young couple, Severus’s arm wrapped casually round Lily as she looked up into his face. There was no real need for them to watch them hawkishly, Minerva thought, as even if she and Sirius planned an escape there was no where for them to go. 

They were trapped on the ferry until they made land, and somehow she doubted that even with the amount of people on board it would be easy to hide amongst the crowd and sneak off the ship without Lily or Severus catching them. Diving overboard into the cold North Sea was clearly a suicidal choice, as well as something she really didn’t want to do. Stealing a lifeboat and rowing back to Aberdeen would likely see them facing criminal charges, as well as all sorts of logistical difficulties including the fact that Minerva had no idea who to navigate in the middle of the sea. She rested her head against Sirius’s chest, drawing a degree of comfort from the knowledge that at least she wasn’t alone.

“If they were intending to kill us, I would have thought they would have done so already,” Sirius said, letting his head rest slightly against the top of hers, “They haven’t hurt us, they haven’t demanded anything in particular of us, but surely they aren’t just making us have an awful holiday. If they wanted a car they could presumably have got one from anywhere,”

Minerva found that she rather agreed with his assessment. It was a situation that she assumed he would have more practical knowledge of given what little he had revealed of his past and his family, so she appreciated his input. It helped calm her fears as well as reassure her that she wasn’t completely crazy in being not quite as frightened as she felt she ought to be. Despite the cold she would have been quite content to stay as she was, resting against Sirius, but the moment was interrupted.

Reluctantly the two separated and were ushered back inside the warm ship. They ate, a meal that served its purpose. Minerva was glad that was given a port and brandy when she asked, which went a way towards settling her stomach. She could feel it relaxing her, and suspected it would also help her sleep. She still wasn’t entirely convinced that sleeping was the wisest choice of action, but she also didn’t feel that there was much to be gained in attempting to stay awake all night. She could only imagine that the next day would be full of driving, though she was unsure where too. Shetland seemed like a considerably smaller place compared to the mainland, making her wonder if they would be reaching a destination with some kind of significance. All she really knew was that she was curious about what Lily and Severus were after.

After eating, they returning to the cabin to sleep until the morning. Minerva nearly went to the small toilet to change, though there was barely any space for using it as it was intended let alone changing into her pyjamas. The others seemed to be making no move to do anything other than change swiftly on their bunks, so Minerva straightened her back with determination and made to do the same. She began to wriggle out of her clothing to fold it away, wondering absentmindedly whether it was going to be possible to do laundry at some point as she was coming towards the end of the clothes she had brought. She knew Sirius must be doing the same, as neither of them had packed for a long trip. She checked her pockets as she always did, a habit developed in part due to Dougal’s annoying tendency to leave tissues in his pockets that if put in the washing machine would create a mess for her to deal with. 

Her wedding ring was still in her pocket. She didn’t want to leave it there, but she also didn’t want to wear it. She rummaged in her bag, drawing out her purse and putting it in amongst her change. It wasn’t a perfect solution, but it was the best she could think of in that moment. As she did so, the thought that had niggled away at the back of her mind returned to the forefront, drawn out by the plain gold band that held such significance. Slowly, she closed her purse, the pieces coming together to form a sort of conclusion that she felt no confidence in.

“Mrs Lupin wasn’t wearing her wedding ring,” she said softly. The room was quiet so no matter her volume they others would hear her statement. She could see Sirius’s confused expression out of the corner of her eye, peering up at her. Had he met the Lupins, she wondered. She could feel Lily’s gaze on her, the calm certainty watching her with a degree of calculation that seemed to be a hint in itself. She caught a glimpse of Severus, shifting slightly so that she was brought into his line of vision, though he was looking at Lily. There was something between them, a shadow of amusement maybe, or curiosity. Minerva didn’t know for certain. She just knew that she had a thought and she was going to speak it aloud.

“At least not the first time I met them,” she continued slowly, “But I saw it glinting in the sunlight when they drove past us in Bridge of Allen. Such a tiny thing, I didn’t even notice properly. But why would she not be wearing it when they arrived in Kippen, but wearing it later on? They aren’t just accessories…”

She had a feeling that she knew where she was going with her train of thought, but a part of her wasn’t sure if she wanted to complete it. She wasn’t sure if it was wise, but she wanted to know the answer. She wanted to know if she was right. She flicked her eyes up, looking across at Lily. Lily tilted her head, adding nothing, her lips pursed. The men were quiet, like an afterthought to the main event.

“You knew I was a professor when we first met…” Minerva said, “Which I suppose you could have found out from asking around the village. Or following me, or breaking into my house. But that was how Maisy introduced me to the Lupins, when they first arrived… And you two are so very good with disguises… But why did you forget the wedding ring?”

“She’s good,” Lily said, turning her attention from Minerva to glance down at Severus, as if she was teasing him lightheartedly, “You missed a chance for a bit of fun,”

“Not my type or style, you know that,” Severus replied with a slightly amused tone to his voice, as if it was all just a casual joke between friends. He might have said more, but Sirius interrupted him indignantly, offended at the perceived slight to Minerva.

“How dare you, she’s amazing!” he said. Minerva appreciated his opinion, but also suspected that he didn’t realise that she was quite grateful to not be Severus’s type, as that would clearly have made the previous night considerably more unpleasant for her. 

“It’s this strange preference I have,” Severus said sardonically, “It might even be considered to be a fetish, I don’t know, but I really like my partners to be willing. Ideally, enthusiastic…”

“He’s always been picky like that,” Lily said with a slight laugh, and Minerva for a moment wondered if the conversation was about to be entirely derailed. As if they were changing the subject, easily slipping into something else to distract her and Sirius. She could still feel the warm glow of the alcohol relaxing her, spurring her on. 

“You were the Lupins,” she said, more confident now of her conclusion, “And who else were you? How long have you been following us? What do you even want?”

“Mais oui,” said Severus in Mr Lupin’s voice, “We were the Lupins. I didn’t realise meeting you that day would have such consequences...”

“I was watching the garage when I saw you first,” Lily said, “I thought you were just a normal customer, but then you went round car shopping together. So we followed you when you went out for the day, which proved to be unspeakably dull and unproductive,”

“You were following us the whole day?” Sirius asked, shocked. Minerva was trying to remember if she had noticed anyone watching the garage, as Lily had described. It seemed like a lifetime ago, and she didn’t remember anything that had stood out in her mind as seeming strange. 

“Switching in and out,” Severus said, “Keeping track of you the whole time but clearly we succeeded in making sure you wouldn’t notice…”

“No one’s going to notice a birdwatcher quietly watching birds,” Lily said, and Minerva remembered the nervy man with the feminine hands that had been on the boat with them crossing Lake Menteith.

“That was you?” she asked, and Lily nodded calmly. She could only vaguely recall his face, having paid him so little attention, but she fully believed that Lily could change herself so completely that she could become a man. 

“And the woman in the cafe…” Minerva peered down at Severus, remembering how he had been a middle-aged woman the day before. He smiled enigmatically. Looking at him she couldn’t imagine that he would make a decent woman, but some how he had.

“All day,” he said firmly, as if losing patience with her attempt to get a description of every face they had worn that day, “Until you went for your tea, then we headed back to Sirius’s with our own,”

That explained to an extent why Sirius’s small flat had smelt of freshly eaten fish and chips when they walked in to find Lily and Severus waiting for them. Minerva shivered slightly, as the day that had been a pleasant one took on a new light. She didn’t like the feeling that there could be people watching her in disguise at any point in her life, with her none the wiser. She felt faintly uncomfortable and somewhat powerless as she lay down to sleep, the alcohol that had warmed her and lifted her confidence enough to start the conversation seeming fainter, as if it had all been drowned out by a cold wave of worry.


	10. Chapter 10

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> A ro-ro is short for roll-on/roll-off (it's a type of ferry).

It was another night when Minerva was surprised to wake up to discover that she had slept, though she did not feel well rested. She knew she must be more rested than either Severus or Lily though, as they had clearly taken turns staying awake, watching over the small cabin. It was like those fantasy books she had read as a teenager, dreaming of adventure, hoping to strike out on a quest of her own, where the group of heroes would always take it in turns to keep watch for enemies during the night as they trekked through perilous lands. Only she wasn’t sure if they all counted as the same group, suspecting that Lily and Severus were primarily keeping watch over her and Sirius so that they didn’t try to escape rather than protecting them from malevolent forces that might see their quest fail. She couldn’t quite imagine a more malevolent force than the two, though she supposed to them the police might be considered something to watch for.

They were all silent as they dressed in the small cabin, going through the necessary actions of preparing to leave the ferry without a word. Minerva had nothing to say, and she imagined that Sirius felt the same. Cowed down and at the mercy of their captors. She would have expected Severus and Lily to be barking orders, but they seemed to be content with how things were. They didn’t seem to need much more than a glance to communicate with each other, as if they were so well in-tune with each other that they could almost read each other’s mind. She assumed that the other cabins were full of people chattering happily, excited despite the early hour, looking forward to stepping off the ferry onto land. Families and couples, groups and individuals. Some on their way home, some on their way to the start of a holiday. She didn’t think there would be anyone else in her position.

Minerva drove them off the ferry, driving them not far before parking and wandering to a nondescript cafe that seemed to serve breakfast to those like them that had been washed in with the tide. They sat down, ordering plates of the usual suspects, accompanied by black pudding and a solid cup of tea. The tables weren’t sparkling clean, and the whole cafe could have done with a renovation, but the food that arrived tasted good. 

She looked thoughtfully at her companions. Sirius looked worn, the stress of the last few days clearly getting to him. There was a tension in his frame combined with a guilty expression whenever he looked at her. She wanted to reach across the table to envelop him in a warm hug, to reassure and comfort him. Severus and Lily were quiet. Lily’s skin had taken on that translucent quality common to those with pale skin, almost ghostly white with what Minerva suspected must be exhaustion. Severus’s skin seemed to be almost sallow, a hint of grey to his face that Minerva couldn’t help but notice. It was a strange sensation, as if the two before her were really and truly human unlike the couple she had first met. Alternatively, she accepted, they had simply not bothered to apply make up.

She doubted that she looked much better than the other three. Her sleep had been disrupted through the realities of them being on a ship sailing over the choppy waves, and she had woken a few times. She imagined that Sirius had slept in a similar manner to her, fractured slumber disturbed far too early by the need to disembark. 

“Unst,” Severus said simply, once they were back in the car, “Drive us to Unst. It’s the northernmost island.”

“We’ll need to pass over Yell to get there,” Lily added, “So first head north so we can get the ferry.”

There were no further instructions, and there was a pause before they set off to give Sirius and Minerva time to pour over the map of the Shetlands. Minerva could hear the rustling that told her that in the back Severus and Lily too were looking at their own map, but unlike the previous days they had no particular preference over the routes taken to get them to their destination. Maybe they were tired of the whole thing, or maybe for whatever reason there was no longer a need to take unnecessarily complicated routes to their destination. Maybe it was more simply the case that there were a seriously limited number of roads on Shetland.

Sirius, as if on autopilot, shoved a tape into the cassette player. Minerva wasn’t certain if the two in the back still wanted music playing, but they didn’t seem to object to it. She wasn’t certain how she felt at the suspicion that they would drive off the end of Scotland before they exhausted her collection of Runrig tapes. Minerva had always preferred driving with something in the background, even if she did theoretically have a full car that might otherwise be expected to make conversation. She didn’t think that she could rely on Lily or Severus to hold a lengthy or decent conversation, and she suspected that it would be difficult to have a free conversation with Sirius with those two present. She did want to talk to him, but she felt she couldn’t really say a lot of what she wanted when the main topics of that conversation were in the backseat. 

The harbour and houses of Lerwick faded as they drove, to be replaced by rugged greenery on either side of the road. She felt a moment of worry. Shetland was small and quite desolate. They were driving away from the only really populated areas, if Lerwick could ever count as a populated area. These distant islands seemed like the kind of place where a body could go a long time without being found, especially if there was no one to report them missing. Especially if there was no suggestion that they could be hidden in a shallow grave so far off the beaten track or maybe even thrown into the cold waters of the North Sea to be carried away by the currents. Even if they were eventually found she couldn’t imagine that there was much of a police force, and what there was presumably had little experience of murder. All sorts of small details that would delay all the necessary examinations that police procedure required, and all the elements that would make it nigh on impossible for their murderers to be caught. 

But at the same time, all of the threatening undertones that had permeated every interaction had disappeared, as if they had been left in Aberdeen. It was almost as if Severus and Lily were bored, or had moved on already to other things. Maybe to them the deed was already done and they were distracted by thoughts of how to achieve their other aims, whatever those were. 

She let Sirius guide her, though there was not much need for it. There were a limited number of roads so whenever there was a fork it was generally quite obvious where they wanted to go. Even if they did chose the wrong one it would just mean a detour around a part of the island rather than actually getting lost. Severus and Lily didn’t seem to be particularly bothered beyond their vague instructions, a sharp contrast to the specific details of the previous days.

It took a little while before it struck and she said, “There are no trees,” in sudden surprise. It was true, there were no trees that she could see. She was used to seeing some trees, even if there would often be large swathes of land cleared for farming. Here there were none, as if they had been defeated by the winds that swept over the land from coast to coast.

“No,” Sirius agreed, “It’s beautiful though.”

They drove through the sparse, lonely lands that seemed at times almost untouched by humanity despite the road that cut cleanly through it. Then they drove along the side of the coast, the waters stretch out beside the road. The road they took was a main one, though small by comparison with mainland Britain. Off it they could see the occasional branch where the alternative was a one track road, sometimes winding off into the distance that they couldn’t see, sometimes heading for a lonely farm standing far from any neighbours.

The ferry across to Yell was a small ro-ro, and the harbour that they boarded from was tiny. There was nothing there but the harbour, an empty road leading up to the jetty that ended in either the sea or the ferry. They stood on deck for the crossing, with Minerva wondering at what a strange company the four of them made. There was no conversation, but she made an effort to stand close to Sirius, slipping her hand into his briefly and giving it a squeeze. He smiled at her, a strangely shy smile that didn’t seem to suit him. As if he wanted to smile with delight and reckless abandon, but felt that he was no longer able to be freely himself. Minerva appreciated his closeness, both for him and for the warmth he provided.

Lily’s hair blew wildly around her face, and Minerva was glad that she had pinned hers back. Lily didn’t seem in the least bit bothered though, closing her eyes and seeming to relax into the wildness of the sea. Both her and Severus seemed to still be drawn and tired, but not to the extent that they had been at breakfast. They were distant in a way they hadn’t been before. No longer filled with latent threats, as if they were already absorbed in some other concern that Minerva couldn’t see, and that she and Sirius were no longer on their minds.

Minerva felt somewhat filled with life, more inspired, as if the lands had filled her with a new surge of life. They drove across Yell, an island that Minerva felt slightly guilty to note that they had arrived on just to drive along a road to the other side to board yet another ferry. As far as she could tell, there was little there. Just the occasional house dotted about the countryside, with sheep grazing languidly on the green grass that grew on the rolling hills. She had thought that the mainland of Shetland was sparsely populated, just as she had thought that the village she lived in was small, but that was nothing compared to Yell. Still, she found herself enjoying the drive even as she begun to wonder what would happen once they reached Unst. It seemed like a long way to drive without a reason. She kept going back and forth in her mind as to whether she should be afraid.

There was no real need for navigation, though Sirius held onto the map anyway. Almost as if he wanted to feel that he was doing something, even though there was nothing to be done. The road they took wound its way with calm certainty to the ferry port where they once again boarded a ro-ro that would take them across the short stretch of sea to their ultimate destination of Unst. The closer they came, the more alive Lily and Severus seemed to become, as if a hidden excitement was spurring them on. On that ferry deck, Lily caught her eyes as Minerva was gazing at them, wondering about where she was being taken. Lily smiled, an actual smile rather than any of the shadowy contortions she had done before. Nothing malicious, no threats or suggestions of power. Just an honest smile, as if Lily was cheerfully looking forward to something. Minerva wondered what it could be.

Minerva shivered, and wrapped her coat around her as best she could. The weather was beautiful, sunlight glinting off deep blue waves, but the wind was unrelentingly cold. She wished, as she had wished the night before, as she had wished on the previous ferry, that she had warmer clothes on. She could see that Sirius was in the same boat as her, not only physically in that they both stood on the deck of the same ferry, but also metaphorically in that they were both feeling the coldness of the wind.

Suddenly, a coat was thrust into her arms. She looked up in startled surprise to see Severus, no longer wearing his coat, holding it out to her. Impatiently, he gestured at her to take it. Uncertainly, she did. Without waiting further, he turned on his heel sharply to return to where he had been standing with Lily towards the prow of the boat, giving Sirius a brief, dismissive glance that suggested he didn’t particularly care for the other man’s comfort.

Minerva wrapped herself gratefully in it, not wanting to reject a source of warmth. She didn’t want to stand there holding it, all the while cold, but neither did she want to walk over to him to return it. It was too big for her, but she didn’t care. It was warm, a thick and heavy black coat built for practicality. It had suited him, with his dark hair and slightly mysterious features. Underneath it he was wearing a black jumper and black trousers, practical and in a way intimidating. Lily too was dressed in all black, though she still had a coat on, her red hair the only sharp contrast of colour of the two. They both wore black boots that looked like they would be equally good for hiking across rough terrain as they would be for kicking down doors. Minerva put her hands into the coat pockets, not really expecting to find anything and not feeling any surprise when they proved to be empty. She didn’t really believe that Severus would have leant her his coat without ensuring that there was nothing in the pockets.

Severus rubbed his arms with his hands, as if he were cold. Minerva imagined he must be. She saw Lily elbow him, almost affectionately, amusement on her face. She saw her say something, but the wind carried the words in the opposite directions, away across the waters rather than to Minerva’s ears. As they once again clambered into her car, she handed it back with words of thanks. Severus brushed them off, taking his coat, as if none of it mattered, but to Minerva it did. If he meant to kill her, then her comfort should have meant nothing to him.

“Head north up the island,” Severus instructed as they drove off the ferry. Minerva did so, as there was little other options available to her. For a while they continued along that road, until Severus and Lily both seemed to sit forward, the map clearly spread out over their laps. They were watching the road carefully, their attention split between the route they were taking and the faint trails marking the roads on the map. 

“The next left,” Lily said suddenly, indicating the fork away from the main road. Obedient and yet concerned, Minerva obeyed. The road wound thinner, away from what had promised to be a collection of houses that might even be enough to qualify as a hamlet, towards empty greenery. Minerva drove slowly, both nervous of where the road was leading as well as concerned about the narrowness of it, as well as sharply aware that those in the back were watching for signs she was unaware of, guiding her according to a map that she knew nothing of. The road dwindled to a single track that became a dirt track through fields, until eventually it ended with a large gate in front of them.

“Here,” Severus said, possibly without much need. There was no where else for Minerva to go, as she was fairly confident that her car was not capable of going fully off-road. Lily hopped out, full of life, red hair blowing once more in the wind that seemed to be a constant of the islands. She opened the gate, waving the car through. Minerva drove slowly along the track, into what seemed to be the driveway of a farmhouse. She stopped, and Severus opened his door. 

“Come on,” Lily said gleefully, encouraging them all out of the car. Minerva and Sirius got out with a lot less enthusiasm.

The farmhouse was reasonably-sized, with a hardy four-wheel drive parked outside. It seemed to dwarf Minerva’s perfectly reasonable little car. Whitewashed walls gleamed in the sunlight, and the whole place seemed astonishingly quiet. There was no background hum of humanity, just the softest of sounds cultivated by nature. There was a pause, quiet amongst that isolated place, and then Severus and Lily moved forward towards the door. That seemed to match the rest of the building, made of a hardy and rustic wood. It seemed to Minerva as if they no longer cared what Sirius or her did, which made her deeply curious what the farmhouse contained. She thought that in that moment she could easily have got back into her car, Sirius with her, and driven off without any protest from either Severus or Lily. They might have shrugged in annoyance, but there would have been no threat of them being chased. They would be free. And it was, to an extent, that sensation that kept her there. She could see it in Sirius’s face too, the feeling of being able to escape should they so wish it meaning that they were held in place by their curiosity at the change, at their dismissal.

Minerva followed them, and she could feel that Sirius too was doing the same. She slipped her arm into his, standing slightly back from the other two as they walked to the door. Sharply, with more strength than Minerva felt was strictly speaking necessary, Severus knocked. The sound rang out, almost echoing through the quiet countryside. There was a moment, almost frozen in time, as they waited. 

The door opened and Minerva felt a sudden start of surprise. She heard Sirius gasp, a strange choking sound, stepping forward, letting go of her arm as he did so. Before her, moving quickly and thus almost blocking her view inside the house, Severus had his foot in the door the instant he was able, his hand slamming against the door to help force it open, positioning himself virtually inside the doorframe.

“Got you,” he said, victoriously.


	11. Chapter 11

“Regulus?” Sirius whispered, astonishment rendering him almost speechless. Minerva could see the similarities between the two, enough to tell her at a glance that they were related even before Sirius confirmed as much. The man in the house had black hair, like Sirius, though his was shorter, closely cropped to his skull in comparison to Sirius’s more roguish length. He was shorter than his older brother, and slimmer. Almost more delicate, even had he not had such an innocently startled look on his face. He was dressed simply, in a cream Aran jumper and sensible trousers, his face clean-shaven. 

“Sirius?” Regulus asked, momentarily distracted from Severus and Lily, who were in the process of inviting themselves firmly into the house, seemingly more stunned by his brother’s presence than the impromptu house invasion. However, his focus couldn’t remain on Sirius for more than a fleeting moment. He backed into the house, and they all followed, Minerva as confused as she imagined Sirius to be.

“Severus, Lily…” Regulus was saying, his hands held up in a gesture partially speaking of attempted pacification and partially reminiscent of the way someone might hold their hands up when threatened with a gun, “I can explain…”

“You can, can you?” Severus asked, his voice low and angry. Regulus seemed to almost flinch away from him, hunching into himself. Minerva doubted that in a fight between the two of them that Regulus stood much chance of winning. But there was no need of a fight, it was just like the night when she had first met Lily and Severus. Even without doing anything, even without hinting at drawing weapons, they simply threatened by their mere presence. 

“Get talking,” Lily snapped, and for a moment there was an impasse. Regulus nodded, entirely apologetic, as if he was both frightened and accepting of his sudden visitors. He shot a glance to Sirius, his eyes passing over Minerva with a hint of confusion, as if he was trying to put it all together but was unable to ask. As if rather than them owing him an explanation for why they came to be hammering at his door, it was he who owed them a full explanation of something Minerva had no knowledge of, except that it formed the backbone of the trip she had ended up taking all the way from her home in Kippen to this farmhouse in Unst. She realised that the explanation was not going to be given in the living room, calmly discussed over a nice cup of tea, but rather confrontationally drawn out as they stood in the hallway.

It seemed like a perfectly nice hallway, just as the farmhouse seemed to be a perfectly nice one in general, not in the least bit the kind of backdrop for what she was witnessing. Practical, but stylish. The kind of place that had been crafted by someone with a passion for interior design, reminding her of the holiday cottages she had occasionally stayed in. By the door were wellies and hiking boots, with heavy coats hanging on hooks above them, geared towards the northern weather. The carpets were dark and in good condition, the walls a plain cream that gave a lightness to the atmosphere, when the room was not full of tension swept up from the south. 

And then into the hallway, as if drawn to there by the sounds of commotion that were surely so unusual in such a quiet and remote place, came another man. Taller than Regulus, and clearly not another Black. He was classically handsome, with messy black hair and a worried expression on his face that was not hidden by his round glasses. He wore practical, casual clothes, but was clearly used to being well-dressed, the cut of his clothing not being cheap, an expensive watch on his wrist. 

“Regulus, what’s going on?” he asked, in a voice that was so like the Black brothers’ voices, that upperclass accent that had gone to public school.

“Our stuff is in the car boot,” Lily said, not allowing Regulus to answer, refusing to relinquish control of the situation, “You can get it. We need to do laundry, those two are starting to smell.” She gestured towards Sirius and Minerva at that, her tone imperious and expecting obedience. The man blinked at her in confusion, not used to being ordered about. He turned his baffled gaze on Regulus, who met his eyes.

“Do as she says,” he said, and when the other man made to protest he said quietly, “James please…”

James did as he had been instructed, though clearly reluctant and confused by the situation, heading out and returning a few moments later with the bags that had been left in the boot of Minerva’s car. As he did so, Regulus started to speak, a garbled explanation that probably made more sense to those it was directed at.

“I’m sorry,” he said wretchedly, “I didn’t mean to double-cross you, by that point I had already made plans and it was too late…”

Neither Severus nor Lily looked impressed at this. They both leant languidly against the wall, making the hallway feel far narrower than it was. Regulus seemed nervous, as if there was a lot he had to say but he didn’t know what order he should say it all in, as if he was afraid of the reaction he would get, careful to keep some distance between him and the interlopers. James moved to stand by him, a supportive gesture even if he still seemed to be in over his head. Minerva suspected it to be futile as actual physical defence would go. He was larger than Severus, just like Sirius was, but she knew that made no real difference. She had felt the strength in Severus’s grip, and had no doubt that lean as he was every ounce had purpose. Lily too, for all that she was a slight woman, seemed like she would have little trouble pacifying them all. 

“We had a deal,” Severus pointed out icily, as Minerva started to connect the dots.

“I know,” Regulus winced, “I was waiting for you. I…” he sighed, glancing at James.

“So you got tired of waiting and ran off with the first person who came along, putting everything at risk?” Lily asked incredulously, glaring at him.

“No,” he protested, “I… I didn’t know what you had planned or when. I…” he sighed and then admitted wryly to Severus, “I thought he was you.”

Severus looked faintly offended at the suggestion, but Minerva could see Regulus’s point. She was starting to wonder if every single person she had ever met in her life might not have been Severus or Lily in disguise. 

“We met, and I thought James was you initially,” Regulus continued, “When I realised he wasn’t, I thought that maybe he had been sent by you. That rather than directly help me run away you were arranging things that way, so James and I made our plans. It was only near the end that I realised he had nothing to do with you.” 

Severus glared at James, as if blaming him for everything wrong in the world.

“James Potter…?” Sirius murmured suddenly, as if trying to dredge the name up from the dark recesses of his memory.

“Yes,” James answered with a goodnatured grin, turning from the threats to look at Sirius.

“We went to school together…?” Sirius said, derailing the conversation, a fact that Minerva could see was annoying Severus, if the clenching of his fists was anything to go by. She could guess that he was fantasising about throttling both the men who were distracting Regulus from finishing his halting tale.

“Yes,” Regulus broke in, turning to Severus as if pleading for understanding, “James went to Eton with Sirius, I thought if not you then maybe Sirius, or even all of you together, had sent James to help get me out without there being any trace of you being involved. Though, as it turns out, James just took a liking to me…”

He blushed, a slightly worried look on his face, which was directed towards his brother and to a lesser extent Minerva, as if he was revealing a great secret and was afraid of rejection. 

“He was so kind and so willing to help me,” Regulus said, his cheeks tinged with pink in a way that didn’t quite suit his skin tone. James beamed at him, a gentle expression in his eyes. Lily rolled her eyes. She clearly had a low opinion of romance and emotions in general. 

“So,” she said, “While we were making all the necessary plans for your escape, ensuring that it would be seamless and that your family would never find you, you went and fell in love with the first half-way decent man that came along. Idiot. You nearly ruined everything.”

There was a silence then, awkward and uncomfortable. The James spoke into it, asking, “How did you find us?”

Severus snorted.

“Us?” he asked incredulously. He looked at Regulus, who flinched again.

“You left a forwarding address,” Severus answered simply, his disapproval clear, directed to both of the men before him, as if Regulus should have known better and James was no more than a maggot and undeserving of his attention.

“Peter betrayed me?” James exclaimed in utter shock, as if the world around him was crashing down. Lily laughed, amusement shot through with a cruel delight.

“If it makes you feel any better, I doubt he meat to,” she said, “But he still gave us everything we needed to know about your flight.”

“It’s amazing what a nice pair of tits can achieve,” Severus said, far too smugly for someone who did not himself actually posses his own pair of tits. Minerva could only assume that the tits in question had been Lily’s, given that hers were considerably more real than any Severus might wear. She also made a far more attractive woman than he did, even accounting for differing tastes.

“And as we followed your trail, we happened to come across something interesting,” Severus continued, with a smile that was not particularly warm, “Your brother who had run away before you. Initially we thought the forwarding address was a red herring, and leaned on him but he seemed none the wiser. Though that might be because he’s got the Black family brains - or lack of.”

He gestured to Sirius, in the manner of someone who had brought a great gift and expected to be thanked profusely. Minerva could see that in a way reuniting the brothers was a kind gesture, though not the method through which it had been achieved. It was also clearly a secondary issues that had happened because it was beneficial to Severus and Lily rather than their actual aim, which rather decreased any of the goodness of their actions. As she and Sirius had had no idea of what was going on, they had simply been brought along for the ride.

Regulus, however started in fear, and Sirius too seemed to be tensing up.

“But if you found us, then does that mean anyone can?” he said, looking for a moment as if he might cry. Minerva felt a hint of worry, remembering the way in which Sirius had spoken of his family on the few occasions he had mentioned them. She remembered the way that Lily had been almost keeping watch as they boarded the ferry, and wondered if there might be others searching for Regulus or Sirius.

Severus laughed, as if it was the most hilarious idea he had ever heard, “Anyone tries to find you,” he said, “And they will find a trail that leads them to a nice little village just south of Bueno Aires. Then, if they give up and try to search again they might just manage to find a fainter trail hidden by the first, which will lead them to Morocco, but once they find themselves in Morocco everything will have gone far too cold.”

Regulus almost seemed on the verge of collapse, overwhelmed with relief at the idea that his family might not find him. Minerva wondered at how lucky she was, to have grown up in a family that while not perfect was at the very least not terrifying in the way the Blacks clearly were. Here she had two men who seemed to have been willing to risk everything to run away and ensure that they would never be found by their kin.

“It had to be rushed, so it isn’t quite as well done as we would have liked,” Lily grumbled, “Because you went and ruined our plans by running off on your own.”

“And Sirius?” Regulus asked nervously, “Surely if you can find him then there’s at least a chance that someone else might get lucky, and then they might find me as well?”

Lily gave a bark of laughter, and grinned at Severus. There was a wicked spark in her green eyes, as if they were in on a macabre joke that the rest of them were ignorant of. 

“I hate to be the bearer of bad news,” Severus said in the kind of tone of voice that suggested he felt no such thing, “But your brother died five years ago in Senegal. Traffic accident. It was all very tragic. My condolences.”

There was a moment of silence, and then to Minerva’s surprise Sirius started to laugh. It wasn’t every day that a man was informed of his own death. She had no idea how these things were arranged, but she realised she didn’t need to know. All that really mattered was that if anyone looked it would appear that there was evidence to mask reality. She knew that he had been afraid of his family, and the fact that any chance of them tracing him or his little garage in Kippen was a weight off his shoulders, even if it meant that they might believe him to be dead.

“That was another unexpected detail that we didn’t want to risk getting out, which delayed us even further,” Lily explained, “And even more of a rush job than dealing with you.”

The tension seemed to be dissolving, as if the anger was being replaced by annoyed acceptance. Regulus too was relaxing, as if he no longer fully feared those invading his new life. Even if they had arrived so suddenly, it seemed that they were also bringing not only his brother but also the reassurance that no one else would find him.

“Thank you,” Regulus gasped, as if he was a dying man whose life had just been saved through the miraculous intervention of angels, though in Minerva’s opinion Severus and Lily were about as far from angels as it was possible to get. They just seemed to be potentially not actually evil.

James smiled, an awkward but grateful smile. It lit up his whole face and Minerva could see that there was a kind charm to him, which must have been extremely attractive to someone who felt trapped. Like a Prince Charming on his white horse come to rescue the damsel in distress. Even if Regulus wasn’t exactly a damsel, she could see that he had plainly been in distress and by the sounds of things hoping for a saviour. James definitely seemed to her to be the more heroic option, even if she had to admit that Lily and Severus seemed to be scarily competent. She wondered if anyone had noticed her and Sirius’s disappearance, and had a strange suspicion that it would all have been set up perfectly so that no one suspected even the hint of foul play. 

“So,” Lily said with a steely smile, dragging the atmosphere back to that of a tense stand-off, “As you can see we have gone above and beyond in fulfilling our part of the bargain. We have arranged it so you cannot be found. We have even arranged it so that your brother is safe from your family, as well as bringing him to you for a touching reunion, all out of the goodness of our hearts.”

Minerva was fairly confident that a lot of their actions were not out of generosity or pure altruism, despite Lily’s claim. Even her tone suggested otherwise.

“All to ensure that you can live your life in peace, free from your old life,” Severus continued smoothly, “We had a deal, didn’t we? A deal that was very favourable towards you. We would help extract you from your family, secret you away and ensure that you could restart your life entirely on your own terms. And all we asked for that was one, tiny thing. Something we could have just taken by force, something we could simply have broken into the family vaults to help ourselves to. We could have left you, rather than offering a bargain that took far more time and effort than simply stealing the damn thing would have. We could have asked for a lot more than we demanded.”

“Yet despite this,” Lily said, “You appear to have double-crossed us. Stolen what we wanted, but for yourself. Absconded, leaving us in the lurch. Not even leaving us the opportunity of simply abandoning you to your fate, which would be your own damn fault, because you stole not just from your family but effectively from _us_. So we had to go that extra mile, to protect you despite your cowardly, traitorous ways. Despite the fact that you were making a mess of our carefully laid plans and creating far more work for us, we still had to struggle against all the odds to ensure that you would be safe. Your bloody brother too.”

Regulus looked as if he were on trial for a heinous crime that he had no choice but to plead guilty for, as if his entire world was in the process of crashing down around him. As if the crimes laid down at his door were ones he couldn’t deny, and had no choice but to accept the punishment for them, no matter what it might be. James was staring at Lily and Severus in shock, as if the implicit revelation that whatever plans he and Regulus had laid down had only succeeded due to the work of those two in the shadows. He shuffled awkwardly, resting an arm about Regulus in a protective manner that seemed to be shy, as if he was not accustomed to showing affection in front of other people.

“You owe us,” Severus said, their entire spiel clearly being a pincer attack designed to wear away any possible resistance that Regulus might show, though in Minerva’s mind there was no need as the poor man had already capitulated the moment they had knocked on his door to shatter the peaceful afternoon. 

“You owe us far more than we ever asked for,” Lily echoed.

“So,” Severus concluded, “Give us the grimoire.”


	12. Chapter 12

There was a moment of frozen silence. Minerva could see Regulus desperately mouthing the words before he managed to speak them aloud, and she already knew them before he finally managed to say, “I don’t have it.”

She wondered at what kind of grimoire could be worth the amount of effort Lily and Severus were expending. She had been expecting that their price would be something more obviously valuable, or maybe a sum of money. That they would be making financial demands when they clearly considered themselves to be due a hefty payment. But even she, who had spent far more of her time than she ever wanted to admit reading dusty old books, doubted that a book, even a valuable one, was worth it. Things like that were only valuable in certain circles, and presumably hard to sell. 

Severus looked like he was on the verge of hitting someone, probably James, which in many ways seemed slightly unfair as it was Regulus who was the cause of the anger. Regulus did however seem to be much more likely to be felled by a sharp punch. Lily looked like she had no such reservations about harming him, and Minerva could almost sense her desire to kick the poor man in the balls. Both of them restrained themselves, merely allowing their angry intent to radiate in a way that made their feelings on the matter perfectly clear.

“Severus, it’s worthless!” Regulus protested, appealing to him, as if he believed Severus to have a better nature.

Severus merely glared, “That is for us to decide, not you,” he ground out angrily as Minerva felt a hint of curiosity pass through her. 

“You took it and showed it to someone?” Lily asked incredulously, and Regulus was lucky that looks couldn’t actually kill or he would be dead. 

James bravely moved to stand in front of Regulus, as if trying to protect him, though Minerva imagined it was a useless gesture. She suspected that Severus would actually quite like an excuse to hurt someone, and he would rather injure James than Regulus, possibly because Regulus looked so apologetic or possibly because he was giving them the information they wanted even if not the item itself.

“I went to Oxford with a guy who studied old things like that,” James said, despite clearly being in over his head, “So we showed it to him to get an idea of the value. He said it was worthless, so we left it with him. Name a price and I’ll pay it.”

“I’m not interested in your money,” Severus said dismissively, as if wishing he could simply dismiss James from existence, “Who has it? Where is he?”

James hesitated, as if he wasn’t certain that he really wanted to give out that information to someone who seemed likely to break his friend’s door down in search of the grimoire they were seeking, but Regulus answered, “Remus Lupin, he lives in Stonehaven.”

Lily swore under her breath. For a moment Minerva thought they would both turn round then and there, heading back down to Lerwick in her car, with or without her and Sirius, to go to Stonehaven. It must be galling, to know that they had passed so close to Stonehaven in their drive to Aberdeen, but had been so entirely unaware. But the moment passed, and there was no further movement. Lily and Severus had shared a glance, which was full of irritation and exhaustion.

“Well,” Severus said finally, “We’re staying for the week. Show us our room, I hope you’ve got the beds made.”

Regulus squeaked in alarm before stammering, “Yes, wait, yes…”

He gestured the two of them after him, shooting a worried look towards Sirius and another puzzled one towards Minerva. His focus, however, was on the irritated pair who were picking up their bags from where James had left them. Regulus led them all through the house to the stairs, climbing up. The first floor was as pleasant as the hallway had been, with a cheerful landing. He pushed open a door to what was clearly a spare room, nicely decorated as if the entire house was designed to hold more people than the two that lived in it, the bed luckily made with sky-blue sheets, the colour which formed the backbone of the colour scheme for that room.

“Here…” Regulus said feebly, gesturing towards it. Severus and Lily simply walked in, their bags landing on the floor with a resounding thump.

Regulus was still speaking, trying to offer them anything they might need, when Lily firmly closed the door, saying clearly, “Piss off Regulus.” For a moment, he slumped in front of the closed door, then he sighed, as if he had been exhausted by the entire experience.

“Should I get them towels…?” James asked uncertainly, clearly both aware of how it was appropriate to treat guests but also not certain that their visitors really counted as guests. They were more like a minor invasion. 

“Yes,” Regulus sighed, “Leave them in front of the door. And maybe some kind of gift? Do we have any nice toiletries? Or chocolate? Or… maybe best not to? They’ll just help themselves to anything they want…”

As James headed to what was clearly the airing cupboard for towels, Regulus uncertainly walked a little further down the landing, opening another door.

“I’m sorry,” he said, clearly to Minerva, “Do I know you?”

“No,” she replied with a smile, aware that the manner of their introduction was decidedly unusual, “I’m Minerva McGonagall.”

“Nice to meet you,” Regulus replied politely, though it was clear he still have no idea how exactly Minerva fit in with the rest of them. Minerva had no real answer to that, as she wasn’t entirely sure herself.

“This is the only other spare room,” he said awkwardly, looking between Minerva and Sirius. The room contained a double bed with welcoming red sheets. Minerva nodded, and then realised that Regulus was trying to figure out if he was offering the room to her alone or her and Sirius. She blushed, uncertain. Sirius was clearly going to be no help, distracted by his brother and the fact that he was far more interested in that than sleeping arrangements. She imagined he would be happy with the sofa or even the floor. The fact that they seemed to be out of danger and he had been reunited with his brother had pushed all other thoughts from his mind.

“Thank you,” she said decisively, “This will be lovely for us.”

They had spent the night together before, and she wasn’t adverse to the idea at all. If Sirius didn’t like it, he could sleep on the sofa, but it made more sense for them both to be in a bed. She was grateful that she would be sharing with him rather than Severus or Lily. Regulus nodded, then gestured to suggest that they should return downstairs.

“Tea? Coffee?” he asked, but stopped when Sirius enveloped him in a hug, something that he had clearly been waiting for the opportunity to do. It was returned enthusiastically, the two brothers staying wrapped in their embrace for long enough to make up for all the years since they had last seen each other.

“I thought you were dead,” Sirius said quietly as they withdrew.

“Dead?” Regulus asked, startled, guiding them to a pleasant little living room. The sofas and armchairs matched, a welcoming deep green, the same shade as the curtains. Sunlight shone in through the large french windows that opened out onto greenery beyond them, which seemed to stretch on forever though Minerva knew that just beyond their line of sight there would lie the sea.

“I thought I would never see you again,” he said, “Not after you left. But why would you think I was dead?”

Sirius blushed, “I sort of assumed they had killed you, and I was next,” he admitted, “I just wanted them to leave Minerva out of it…”

Regulus started, “Severus? And Lily? No,” he said with absolute confidence, to Minerva’s surprised, “They may be a bit… Well… _Them_. But they don’t kill, or at least as far as I know. They aren’t as bad as they appear. I… don’t think…?”

He seemed slightly hesitant, as if he wasn’t entirely sure what he thought about his guests either. But then he shook it off, his attention returning to his brother. Minerva felt as if she was an intruder, sitting down awkwardly in an armchair simply for something to do, allowing herself to fade into the background. 

“I almost can’t believe it,” Regulus murmured, and it was clear that Sirius felt similarly, “Tell me, how have you been? It’s been, what, nearly ten years?”

Sirius nodded, “I’m sorry for just leaving without telling you. I didn’t think you’d want to leave, and I just had to get out. I couldn’t stay.”

Regulus shrugged, “I understand. I missed you bitterly. Mother and father were furious…”

“I can imagine,” Sirius laughed, a slight hint of malicious pleasure at the idea of his parents’ anger, “It’s been good though. I did some apprentice work, and got a job. Leant a trade. I own a small garage in a small village, and it’s nice. Peaceful. A long way away from Grimmauld Place. I get to tinker with engines. It may not be glamorous, but I think I’m happy.”

Regulus smiled a slightly wistful smile, as if he was both glad of the image but also sad that he had never been able to be involved with his brother’s life.

“Now,” Sirius said, “Tell me about you. How were things? What happened to make you decide to run away too? I didn’t think that would ever happen, you were always the favourite…”

Regulus sighed, looking away. He picked at the sofa, as if thinking of what to say. Quietly, James entered the room, hesitating slightly before moving to sit beside Regulus on the sofa, taking the other side from Sirius. It was almost a deliberate act, as the armchair that was free would have made far more sense to Minerva.

“They were angry with you,” he started, “So I had less freedom. They didn’t want it to happen again. And without you, even if you were disobedient, things were… different. It was alright for a while, but then they started to make noises about finding me a suitable wife, to keep the business in the family…” there was a pause, then Regulus continued, “You know what they were like. I could never have been me. I could never have been…”

He took a long time to finish his sentence, and the final word came out in a trembling whisper, “Gay.”

He was hunched in on himself, and James had a hand gently resting on his knee, as if that slight touch could provide all the moral support in the world. Regulus steadfastly refused to meet the eyes of anyone in the room.

“No,” Sirius said quietly, awkwardly patting his brother on the shoulder, “Mother would not like that.”

“Or father…” Regulus sighed, and then yelped as Sirius pulled him into another hug. Sirius clung to him as if he would never let go, as if he would never again allow them to be parted. Over their heads, Minerva caught James’s eye. He wasn’t shy or afraid like Regulus had been, but met her gaze with a hint of defiance, as if challenging her to say anything. But Minerva had nothing to say. She smiled at him softly, and his expression softened. He smiled back, as if that was all it took for them to become allies, the strange situation of being drawn into a world they didn’t belong to merely through having lost their hearts to the two brothers.

“We met at a party,” Regulus said, his voice slightly muffled by Sirius’s arms, “You know, those stupid cocktail parties we had to go to?”

Sirius nodded, drawing back just enough that Regulus could speak clearly, and Minerva could tell that he had always hated the parties Regulus was talking about. She couldn’t imagine him in a suit let alone a tuxedo, making polite small-talk. He suited ripped jeans and grease-stained t-shirts, motorbikes and engine parts. He suited the garage he owned and the life he had crafted for himself, the life that Minerva was now a part of.

“And at first I thought he was Severus,” Regulus admitted, repeating his assertion from earlier, “They had approached me you see. They didn’t have to, it’s true. I think it would probably have been easier on them if they’d just left me. But they made me an offer. They would get me out and away from it all, and all I had to do was take with me that blasted grimoire. I had no idea what they wanted it for and honestly I still don’t. It’s not that old, it’s not valuable at all, it’s not even pretty. It’s just a boring old book with a lot of blank pages. But they made me an offer, I met James and thought he was my ticket out. And I wanted to run away with him, be with him, not marry some girl mother chose for me. I wanted to find out who I was. I wanted a chance to be myself. I wanted a chance to be…” he hesitated again before saying with more confidence that the last time, “Gay.”

“I though oh no I’m falling in love with Severus this is awkward,” he said with an embarrassed laugh, the sense of being accepted relaxing him to the point of rambling, “But then I realised he was actually genuinely James. He was so sweet and understanding. Bought this house for us. It was a holiday cottage, and he just got it with all the furniture already in it. I think he bought a number actually, but the other’s are being rented out like they’re supposed to be. Just this one, so far from everything, he kept for us…”

James looked at his with love in his eyes, and Minerva felt glad that things had worked out the way they had. She was even beginning to feel quite alright with the way in which she and Sirius had been brought to the farmhouse. It wasn’t exactly ideal, but she was glad to have been able to witness the reunion of the brothers, and to see Regulus so happy. She was glad to be able to have this insight into Sirius and his past. For a moment, there was a peaceful quiet to the room. She was happy to just soak it up.

“They ordered laundry,” James said, speaking to Regulus and it was clear who the they were, “Should I do it now? Do you think they have stuff they want washing? I probably shouldn’t knock on their door to ask, should I?”

“No,” Regulus said, “I think if there’s anything you two want washing,” he looked at Sirius and Minerva, who both nodded, “Then we should probably do it sooner rather than later. But it’s best not to disturb Lily and Severus. I would imagine they haven’t slept properly in a while, if you’ve been driving up here. I’ve always had the impression that they are thorough so I guess keeping an eye on things at all times of day would count.”

Minerva paused, and wondered again about the drive up. She had assumed that the two had wanted the backseat so they could talk and disguise themselves freely, but she supposed they could also have been napping in turn throughout the journey, especially if at night they were staying awake on watch.

“Who are they?” she asked curiously, “What do they do? How do you know them?”

Regulus scratched his head uncertainly, shrugging, “As far as I know, they steal things, but mostly things from people like my family. Money, valuables. That sort of thing. But things like paintings that were illegally obtained, so no one can go to the police. Higher risk, of course. My family protects what they have, and are less concerned about issues of force than the officials might be.”

After that, the conversation fizzled again, as conversations where there are many years of news to cover often do. James went out in his car to buy groceries, as they didn’t have enough to feed six people for a whole week. Minerva was glad to no longer be driving anywhere, and enjoyed the feeling of stretching her legs. She also appreciated being able to wander out of the farmhouse, and stroll about in general. Regulus did laundry, and Sirius stayed close to him, which Minerva found to be understandable.

She might have expected hunger to drive the other two guests down for tea that evening, but they stayed shut in the bedroom they had claimed as their own. Even though they were no longer there, she could still sense their presence. Their shadow seemed to hang over the whole house and all the other occupants. Regulus put the leftovers in a Tupperware box in the fridge, for just in case, and left them undisturbed. Minerva wondered at the fact that after all the tension of the journey Lily and Severus felt so confident in their surroundings and the people in the farmhouse that they would simply go to bed. 

When Minerva and Sirius headed for their bed that night, tired but relieved, the towels that had been left on the landing outside that ominously closed door had disappeared, presumably collected quietly while no one was paying them any attention. That they were alone for the first time since their day out, and finally feeling freer again, in some ways was a side point. Sirius’s mind was still caught up in thoughts of his brother, and the man he had known from school. Minerva didn’t mind, the distraction serving to keep the shyness of them once more sharing a bed at bay. 

Very slowly, as if he was torn between utter faith and total uncertainty, Sirius reached his hands forward, running fingers from her hair to her shoulders. He looked into her eyes, apologetically and gratefully, before hesitantly leaning forward, giving her ample chance to resist. She didn’t. She let his lips brush hers, a shy flirtation that held the promise of a future yet to come.


End file.
